Extreme Measures
by TRUSSELL33
Summary: Booth and Brennan are fighting. Cam, Hodgins, Angela and Sweets decide to help them work things out. I suck at summaries but I can guarantee that hilarity and smut will ensue.
1. Chapter 1

**Musie was so sad about Games being over that I had to let her start another one. Let me know what you think. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Dr. Camille Saroyan stood looking at the two people in front of her and fought the need to scream out her frustration. It's not like anyone would actually be able to hear her over the noise those two were making yelling at each other. Dr. Temperance Brennan and FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth stood toe to toe on the platform, their angry stances mirror images of each other and the way they were going at it gave a new meaning to the phrase getting in your face. Cam didn't even know what had set them off this time. Not that it seemed to take much, especially lately, for them to have one of their infamous discussions. One minute, they would be fine, just Booth and Bones and the next minute, for some inexplicable reason, they would exhibit the most erratic and irrational behavior that Cam had ever seen and be all up in each other's faces. Then they would disappear for a while, presumably to go to their separate corners and lick their wounds until you looked up and they were, once again, living in the land of the sane. It was really starting to wear on her nerves. It was also beginning to stress the rest of the team to the point that it was interfering with their work.

Cam badly wanted to smack their heads together and tell them to just sleep together already and give them all some much-needed relief. But she could hardly do that since she had been the one to tell Booth that he had better be sure about his feelings for Brennan before he told her that he loved her. She could not believe how much she had come to regret what she had thought at the time was good advice. She had expected for Booth to get all broody for a little while and then man up and tell the anthropologist how he felt because a moron could see that these two people were in love with each other. _But had that happened?_ No, it had not. Instead, two professional, allegedly intelligent people had suddenly turned into adolescents who apparently couldn't stand the sight of each other and Cam couldn't believe how guilty she felt every time she saw them going at it like this. She had really messed things up for these two and she had to figure out how to go about righting that wrong but right now, she had to separate them and send them to time out. _She had never felt more like a kindergarten teacher in her life._

"Okay, people, enough!" yelled Cam at the top of her lungs and was a little surprised when the agitated pair turned to look at her, the blessed silence almost deafening and most definitely welcome. "What's going on here?" Cam demanded, folding her arms across her chest and giving them her very best I am the boss look. She rarely interfered between the partners but had found it necessary to separate them on several occasions over the few weeks and she was getting pretty fed up with their drama. Booth and Brennan both flushed and looked at the floor at Cam's question. Booth muttered an answer and Cam looked at him in disbelief then very, very quietly asked him to repeat it.

"We were discussing a movie," he repeated, looking around at the staring people a little sheepishly.

_Oh, dear God_, thought Cam, _what the hell was wrong with these two?_ _Couldn't they see that the way they were acting wasn't about any freaking movie?_ Apparently not, she realized, but no way was she getting into that right now or ever, she admitted to herself, knowing they would not welcome her interference. But she absolutely had to figure out some way to fix things between the partners before they drove them all insane. Wearily rubbing her temples and trying to ease the headache caused by all the shouting, she knew she would have to think about that later. Right now, she had simply had all she could take for one day.

"Well, consider the discussion over," she snapped. "I think you two have disrupted the lab enough for one day," she continued harshly. "Booth, I think you should go," she instructed and saw his eyes widen in disbelief that he was getting kicked out of the lab but she didn't want to take the chance that they would be fighting again as soon as she turned her back.

"What? No, Cam, we were just having a discussion. Booth doesn't need to go," Brennan objected, immediately jumping to her partner's defense and coming to stand protectively in front of Booth as if Cam was going to physically attack him. Cam didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the other woman's actions because Brennan, herself, had looked as if she would take great pleasure in killing Booth mere minutes ago. These two were clearly making her nuts.

"Fine," she gritted out through clenched teeth, "but if I hear another peep out of you two, Booth is out of here," she threatened, holding Brennan's eyes to let her know that she meant it. Brennan's eyes narrowed but she finally nodded, grabbed Booth's hand and dragged him off the platform and toward her office, shutting the door firmly behind them. Cam shook her head.

Those two had been acting strange for months now and, at first, she had thought they had started a relationship. But a few weeks ago, she and Angela had questioned Booth and Brennan separately and both had denied that anything had changed in their relationship. And then, as if in response to the questioning, they had turned into raving lunatics and were doing their best to take the rest of the squint squad with them. Secretly, Cam thought that the fighting had started after the questioning because it made them both realized that that was exactly the kind of relationship they wanted with each other but both were afraid to make the first move and she was at least partially responsible for that. Which made it her fault they were all being driven crazy. Which made it her responsibility to take care of the problem before they all wound up in a rubber room with Zack.

"Do you think they're in there fighting?" questioned Angela softly. Cam looked around to see that Angela, Hodgins and, oh joy, Lance Sweets had joined her while she was lost in thought.

"I don't know, Angela," Cam answered tiredly. She couldn't see the room's occupants but there were no raised voices or sounds of combat coming from the room so Cam was going to assume that all was well. And if they had to deal with a couple of dead bodies in the morning then she would be, at least, well rested and destressed enough to take on the task.

"Are they like this with you now, Sweets?" Cam questioned curiously. The young psychologist nodded solemnly.

"Pretty much," he answered, an odd note in his voice.

"We have to do something," Angela said with feeling. They were all on edge constantly lately, never knowing what was going to set one or the other of the dynamic duo off and they all just wanted it to stop. Not that either of the partners were being mean to anyone other than each other, they weren't. They seemed to save all their angst up to release on each other but you couldn't help getting caught in the cross hairs every once in a while . The best you could hope for lately was just not to be around when they let loose.

"What exactly do you think we can do, Angela?" Asked Hodgins cautiously, knowing how much his ex thought those two belonged together.

"I don't know, Hodgins," Angela said, looking at him pleadingly. "Something had to have happened and maybe if we could figure out what went wrong between them, we could figure out how to fix it." Warming to her subject, she continued with more animation, not noticing that Cam and Sweets were both looking at the floor rather guiltily. "You two," she motioned between Hodgins and Sweets with a finger, "are geniuses and we," she motioned between herself and Cam, "are pretty smart. Plus, we're women and surely we can figure out a way to fix whatever Booth did."

"Why do you assume that Booth did something? What if Brennan did something?" demanded Hodgins, not at all certain why he found Angela's assumption offensive, but he definitely did.

"Oh, please, Hodgins," Angela rolled her eyes, "Bren couldn't mess things up this badly even if she tried. It had to be Booth." She insisted.

"You don't know that, Angela," Hodgins insisted, his ire rising "You don't know that, Angela,". "Brennan is pretty damned good at messing up relationships," he said heatedly.

"They didn't do anything. I messed things up," Cam confessed, suddenly unable to contain the guilt eating away at her insides a second longer.

"I did it," Sweets insisted simultaneously, also harboring a lot of guilt over the way the partners had been lately. Hodgins and Angela instantly turned their attention to the other two in puzzlement.

"Oh my God, you slept with Booth, didn't you?" Angela gasped to Cam, her eyes going round and her hand flying up to cover her mouth, her horror at such a thing happening again obvious. Hodgins eyes widened then narrowed in accusation and even Sweets looked very disapproving. Cam wasn't sure whether to be insulted that they all obviously didn't think she was good enough for Booth or be glad she could deny the accusation.

"No, Angela, I did not," she snapped. The other three didn't look even slightly mollified and were still eying her suspiciously, Sweets' confession apparently forgotten. "Let's go to my office," Cam suggested with a sigh. She was ready to talk to someone about this and while she might not have chosen these three together, she realized she probably would have wound up talking to one of them about it eventually because her guilt became a heavier burden with every disagreement she witnessed. Besides, maybe Angela was right, maybe between the four of them, they could come up with some way to fix this mess. They were barely inside Cam's office with the door still closing behind them when Angela rounded on her.

"What did you do, Cam?" the artist demanded. Cam calmly seated herself behind her desk, wanting to be in a position of power when she made this admission. But she didn't feel powerful, she felt mean and petty and like a really, really bad friend to Booth and Brennan.

"I basically told Booth not to tell Brennan how he felt about her," she mumbled, avoiding everyone's eyes.

"What?" gasped Angela.

"Why would you do that?" demanded Hodgins who wasn't quite as hostile as Angela but it was close.

Cam didn't really have a good answer to that one other than she had been looking out for Brennan because she truly believed what she had told Booth, that if he changed his mind after telling her he loved her, the anthropologist would die of loneliness before she let anyone else in. Since then she had searched her heart and was ashamed to admit there might have been a tinge of jealousy and possessiveness for Booth still lingering there. She didn't think those had anything to do with the advice she had given him but she couldn't deny it with any certainty either. But, she sure as hell couldn't tell these people that, not that she was afraid to face their wrath, exactly. It was just that she needed to fix this and she needed their help to do it.

"Booth asked me for advice and I told him what I thought at the time. I still think it was good advice, Angela," Cam insisted, if somewhat half heartedly. "But I certainly didn't expect it to lead to this." She waved her hands around dramatically to encompass the lab.

"What the hell did you expect to happen, Cam?" grouched Hodgins, running a hand through his hair and glaring at his boss.

"Wait," Angela interrupted, pinning Cam with a speculative look. "Exactly how does Booth feel about Bren, Cam?" Cam had a much harder time answering this one because she wouldn't betray the confidences of a friend so she just rolled her eyes at Angela.

"So he loves her?" picked up Hodgins and Sweets perked up from where he had been slouched in a chair, taking an interest in the conversation for the first time.

"Did Booth actually say he was in love with Dr. Brennan?" Sweets asked, looking at Cam intently. Cam had to think about that one. No, actually Booth had inferred it and she had actually said the words, so it wouldn't really be breaking a confidence to tell them that.

"No, I did, but he didn't deny it." She felt safe in assuring the other three that Booth definitely loved Brennan because there was no doubt in her mind that he was very much in love with the anthropologist and that she loved him back. Besides, if there were truly going to be any help, they needed an accurate assessment of the situation.

"Well, that shouldn't be so hard to fix," Hodgins said, rubbing his hands together as if he were getting ready to take on a task. The other three looked at him questioningly. "Cam, you just have to convince Booth to tell Dr. B how he feels," he explained with a sigh of exasperation, looking at them as if they were idiots. The look on Cam's face at this pronouncement was indescribable and Hodgins was just about to demand she tell them the rest of what she was obviously holding back when Sweets interrupted.

"I'm not sure that would take care of whatever problem has developed between them, Dr. Hodgins. Unless I'm seriously mistaken, Cam's conversation with Booth took place months ago and this increased aggression between the two of them is a fairly recent development," Sweets used his best psychologist voice but Hodgins wasn't about to let his plan be shut down without a fight.

"Dude, will you lighten up?" he directed at Sweets. "It's worth at least giving it a shot," he told Cam earnestly with Angela eagerly nodding her approval.

"Um, guys, I'm afraid it won't do any good," Sweets replied softly.

"How do you know that, Sweets?" Hodgins demanded, turning on the younger man in irritation. Sweets dropped his head into his hands and mumbled an answer. Hodgins and Cam look each other in confusion because they hadn't understood a word. Angela looked at Sweets in utter disbelief and the beginnings of anger, hoping that she had misunderstood.

"Would you please repeat that more clearly, Dr. Sweets?" Cam asked politely before Angela could demand the same thing much less politely. With a sigh, Sweets sat up straight in the chair and then flopped against the back of the chair as if it was too much effort to hold himself upright. He knew that he would be skating the line on breaking patient confidentiality if he shared this but, like Cam, he felt that he had made a huge mistake and guilt was taking its toll on him. He avoided all three sets of eyes that were locked on him.

"I convinced Booth that he's not in love with Dr. Brennan, that those emotions were generated by a combination of factors when he was in the coma," Sweets admitted, looking at the hands twisting in his lap rather than the other people in the room.

"You did what?" Angela hissed, her voice so low and threatening that Sweets actually felt a shiver of unease travel down his spine. Cam and Hodgins just gaped at the kid, unable to believe anyone could do that. "Why would you do something like that, Sweets? How did you do something like that?" Angela demanded more loudly, her anger rising. Cam and Hodgins were just as eager to hear an explanation but Angela seemed to be handling the role of interrogator with aplomb so they left her alone.

"Because it was the truth, Angela," Sweets told her, finally raising his head and he looked like a lost little boy, but the other three had little sympathy to spare for such a colossal screw up.

"How could you possibly know that?" demanded Hodgins when Sweets appeared to be finished with Angela's questions. The artist looked like she was almost too angry to speak so Hodgins took over.

Sweets quickly stammered out an explanation concerning the two differing brain scans of Booth's that he had used to determine that Booth really was not in love with the anthropologist. He kept his eyes on the floor during the entire explanation and waited for someone to start yelling at him. When that didn't happen after several seconds, he finally ventured a glance upward and found the other three occupants of the room staring at him as if he were a moron. He really couldn't blame them because, after observing Booth and Brennan for several weeks after Booth returned to work, he had realized his mistake. It didn't matter what a stupid brain scan said, those two were obviously in love with each other. He had then done everything within his power to rectify this error other than just going to Booth and admitting he had been wrong. He had found himself unable to do that because he was finally getting some respect and acceptance from the pair and he knew that would all be gone if he admitted his blunder. He knew that was selfish and ethically questionable but he just couldn't bear to ruin things for himself if there was any other way.

He had started hanging around the partners as much as humanly possible and making little suggestions here and there and, for a while, it had looked as if they were getting closer. He had even discreetly questioned them separately about their seemingly more intimate relationship then everything had blown up in his face. Only days later, the two had been at each other's throats over nothing in one of their counseling sessions and they had been going at it ever since. He actually had the thought that they were just trying to throw him off the trail of their new relationship but had discarded the explanation when he realized they were fighting at the Jeffersonian and at Booth's office as well. They wouldn't talk to him about what was wrong and he was at a loss to explain it.

"That is the most ridiculous thing that I have ever heard, Dr. Sweets," Cam's scoffing voice broke the strained silence. Sweets' head came up and his eyes narrowed.

"What, exactly, is that supposed to mean, Dr. Saroyan?" he asked, insulted dignity over her remark clear in every rigid line of his body. Cam rolled her eyes at the question. Sweets' dignity didn't even make the list of her concerns at the moment.

"It means, Dr. Sweets, that Seeley Booth isn't a scientist and he would trust his heart and his gut over your scientific explanation any day of the week," she returned firmly. Sweets, now furious, left his chair, planted his palms on Cam's desk and leaned toward her.

"That may have been true before the brain tumor, Dr. Saroyan," he admitted, "but you had to have noticed that Booth was very confused about a lot of things after his surgery and he had to learn to trust himself again." Cam sighed and nodded because the kid had a good point, she had noticed the same thing which is why she had given him that stupid advice in the first place.

"Okay, you two, that's enough," demanded Hodgins, stepping closer to Cam's desk. "The way I see it is that the two of you," he shot each of them a glance laden with disapproval and they both hung their heads in shame, "convinced Booth that he's not in love with Brennan and to never tell her he is if he ever smartens up enough to figure it out. Is that correct?" Cam and Sweets nodded rather dejectedly. "Okay, we can work with that," Hodgins cheerfully rubbed his hands together and ignored the way the other three were looking at him. He refused to admit, even to himself, that this little problem could be insurmountable and it looked like it was up to him to lead the effort to rescue Booth and Brennan's relationship.

"How can we work with that, Hodgins?" demanded Angela incredulously.

"Look, people, we all know that those two belong together even if they're not smart enough to figure it out. Now, thanks to you two," Sweets and Cam once again received the chastising evil eye, "they can hardly stand to be around each other. If they break up as partners, what do you think will happen around here, Angela?" By their gasps and the looks of horror on the faces of the other three, Hodgins could tell that they had never even considered that possibility. Well, he had thought about it and he knew that it would be awful. If Brennan didn't take off for parts unknown, she would make the lab a living hell for each and every one of them. Admittedly, Hodgins didn't want that to happen but more than that, he didn't want two good friends to rip each other to shreds and break each other's hearts. _He knew how badly that hurt_, he admitted to himself, meeting Angela's eyes.

"What you want to do, Hodgins?" Angela asked with a soft smile.

"I don't know yet," admitted Hodgins, "but surely we can come up with something to make things better than this. I don't really see how we can make things much worse." The others sadly nodded their agreement.

"Okay, I'm in," Angela offered laying a hand palm down in the middle of Cam's desk, her eyes holding Hodgins'.

"I'm in," Cam quickly agreed, laying her hand atop Angela's. Three sets of eyes focused on Sweets. He chewed on his bottom lip and had a quick internal debate.

"I'm in," he finally agreed, placing his hand atop Cams.

"I'm in," Hodgins stated unnecessarily, placing his hand atop Sweets. The four co-conspirators looked at each other and their determination to fix this became almost palpable. They had to because the alternative was unthinkable. If Booth and Brennan's partnership broke up, the likelihood of them ever becoming romantically involved would be considerably reduced and that would shatter everyone in the room's belief in love and relationships. Those two belonged together and they were damn well going to make sure that they stayed that way.


	2. Chapter 2

**This one is really short for me but I'm hoping you will forgive the length for the content. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

"Cam was really mad, Booth. I think we might have gotten a little carried away," Brennan said quietly as she closed and locked the door to her office. It was a precaution she had been taking for quite some time now whenever she and Booth were alone in her office with the door closed.

"She'll get over it," Booth returned without a lot of sympathy until Brennan turned a chiding look in his direction. "Okay, we got a little carried away," he admitted. She started to walk past him to her desk but he grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the part of the office that could only be seen when you actually stepped through the doorway.

"This is not a good idea, Booth," she told him trying to sound firm but even she could hear the breathless excitement in her voice. He paid no attention whatsoever to her words, releasing her arm and slowly backing her against the wall in the small space between her bookcase and the bathroom wall. "Booth, the only reason we had to have a fight today was because we almost got caught last night," she reminded him as his hands came up to rest on the wall on either side of her head.

"Umm hmm," Booth murmured, his eyes fixed on her lips as his head bent toward hers.

"Booth, you're going to get us caught," she whispered virtuously even as her face lifted toward him and her lips parted. Booth laughed.

"You know no one will come near this office for least an hour even if the building is on fire, Baby," he reassured her as his lips brushed across hers in a whisper soft caress. His lips settled over hers a little more firmly but he still kept the kiss much lighter than he wanted. "But if you don't want to kiss me, I guess I can always go back to my…oomph," His words were cut off as she grabbed the lapels of his jacket and jerked him against her, her mouth opening under his and forcing his lips apart. _Oh, yeah, that's how he wanted to kiss her_, thought Booth, _hot and hard and deep_. Then her tongue snaked into his mouth and he was no longer able to think, only to feel.

He felt the softness of her lips beneath his and groaned as her silky tongue curled around his and tempted it to follow as it retreated into her mouth. He tasted the coffee she had been drinking earlier as his tongue slipped past her lips and teeth to sensuously explore every inch of her mouth's hidden depths. _They had been sleeping together for almost five months and every single time he touched or kissed her, it still seemed like the very first time._ He still got that little thrill of excitement and wonder in the pit of his stomach you get before you kiss someone new for the first time every time he thought about her. And, God, the instant he touched her, he was hot and hard and ready. _Oh, who the hell was he kidding?_ He was hot and hard and ready just about any time he even thought about her which was constantly. His body felt things with his Bones that he'd never felt before, they were so far outside his previous experiences that he didn't even know how to describe them. He, however, had no problem whatsoever identifying the way his heart and mind felt about the woman in his arms. Love. He loved her so much that it felt like his heart got a little bigger every day just to contain that love and keep from exploding in his chest.

Brennan moaned into Booth's mouth as he stepped even closer, nudging her legs apart and insinuating one hard thigh between hers, his hands going to her hips and pulling her sharply against him. The knot of desire in her belly tightened and she gasped as his thigh came into hard contact with her hot, moist center, his hands moving her hips back and forth only intensified the ache. She couldn't believe how fast this man could get her hot. A single kiss from this man took stripped all her defenses, took away her ability to think and rationalize and turned her into a hot blooded woman with the man of her dreams. All it took from him was a single look and she had to fight the urge to throw him down where he stood and do unspeakable things to his body. She had struggled with those feelings for so long that it was sometimes hard for her to remember that she had the right to act on them now.

"This is crazy, Booth," she whimpered as his foot nudged her legs further apart and he stepped between them with a grunt of satisfaction. _Crazy_, thought Booth, _yes what they had together was definitely crazy but it was also mind blowingly wonderful and felt more right than anything had ever felt in his life. "_Booth," she said urgently as his hands went to the buttons of her blouse. She knew that if she didn't stop him before his hands began to touch her naked flesh, she wouldn't be stopping him at all and they would be making love right here in her office during business hours where anyone could walk by and see. Right now, she wanted to make love with him more than she wanted to draw her next breath but she knew that they would both regret it later if they got caught. It would completely defeat the purpose of the little charade that they had just enacted on the platform and the unprofessional behavior would most likely get them split up as partners, which was exactly what they were trying to avoid. Gathering her pitifully small willpower where this man was concerned, she grabbed his wandering hands. "Booth, you have to stop. We're in the office," she said sharply directly into his ear.

Booth's head came up and he looked around as if surprised to see that they were, indeed, in her office. He knew she was right but that didn't make it any easier to let her go. It was like this every time with her. When he touched her, everything else just faded into obscurity. He forgot about where they were and who might see them. Hell, they could be standing in the middle of a burning building and he wouldn't notice because he was so wrapped up in the way she made him feel. His forehead fell to her shoulder and he took several deep breaths that didn't help at all because with each breath his lungs filled with her scent, a hint of vanilla and something that was uniquely her. Raising his head, he lowered his forehead to rest against hers.

"You know it turns me on when you get all riled up like that," he admonished and was delighted by the flirtatious look she threw him from under her lashes. In the last five months, he'd seen sides of her that he had never known existed and he loved it when she got all flirty on him.

"Does it?" she asked coyly slipping out from between him and the wall when he reached for her with a growl. Yes, she knew it turned him on which is why she let herself go so much when they thought it was necessary to have a public disagreement. It turned her on, too, but he didn't really need to know that. Laughing, she turned back toward him and her eyes widened at the predatory look in his eyes as he came toward her as if he was stalking prey. "Now, Booth," she cajoled, holding her hands up in supplication and backing away from him, "remember where we are." He smiled and kept coming.

"I haven't forgotten," he said smoothly as he continued to stalk her.

"Then what are you doing?" she asked as he took her arm and started pulling her toward the office door. She had a pretty good idea and she was all for it but it was a lot of fun to tease him.

"We're going to lunch," he returned as he reached out to unlock the door.

"Ah, you want some pie," she teased, blinking big, innocent blue eyes at him. He knew exactly what she was doing and his eyes told her to behave herself as they started across the floor of the lab.

"No, Bones, I don't want pie." His voice and the heat in his eyes told her what he did want and she shivered with anticipation but her smile never faltered.

"Are we going to the diner?"

"No."

"Then where are we going?" She actually fluttered her lashes at him and he bit back a laugh.

"Your place is closer." He stopped and looked down at her, realizing that he was so hot to drag her off somewhere totally private that he hadn't really given her a choice. "We can go to the diner if you want," he offered, forcing the words out. She peeked up at him and he was instantly reassured by the heat in her eyes that she was just as eager for them to be alone as he was.

"Are you hungry?" The sultry tone in her voice sent shivers down his spine. He shook his head and she gave him a brilliant smile. "Then my place it is."


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry, guys, time got away from me. I hope you enjoy the next chapter. Please remember to review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

BACK IN CAM'S OFFICE

"It looks like Booth and Brennan are headed out," Angela noted absently to the others, squinting and trying to get a better look but they were all the way across the floor and she couldn't make out anything except that it was them. _At least, it didn't look they were still fighting, thank God. _ "What are we going to do?" she demanded, turning back to the others. She was met with silence. They had been throwing ideas back and forth but hadn't come up with anything they all agreed on so far. She, personally, thought her idea was a damned good one but the others thought it was a bit extreme. Well, if this situation didn't call for extreme measures, she didn't know what the hell did.

"Cam, are you willing to talk to Booth about this?" Hodgins asked and noted that strange look on her face again. She was obviously holding out on them and whatever she wasn't telling them made her very uncomfortable.

"I don't think it would do any good, Hodgins," she admitted with a sigh.

"Why?" asked Sweets, having picked up on Cam's discomfort with the subject. Cam bit her lip and debated with herself. She so didn't want to share this but it was very pertinent to the situation they were faced with.

"Booth is seeing someone," she almost whispered, looking at the hands twisting together on her desk to avoid three gazes. She really didn't want to see their reactions to this little tidbit of information. She quickly found out she didn't have to be looking to know how they reacted.

"_What?_!" yelled Angela irately.

"Oh my God," said Sweets sinking back into his chair as if he couldn't stand on his own.

"Are you sure?" demanded Hodgins through clenched teeth. Cam looked up in surprise at his tone and saw a muscle twitching in his jaw, a sure sign that he was well and truly pissed.

"Yes, I'm sure," she sighed, finally looking at the others. Angela looked like she wanted to tear Booth apart and Sweets looked like his parents had just split up.

"Who is she?" Angela demanded and Cam felt a shiver run down her spine at the menace in her tone.

"I don't know," Cam admitted actually glad she couldn't give Angela a name.

"Then how do you know he's seeing someone?" snapped Hodgins, running an agitated hand through his hair. He knew that technically Booth seeing someone other than Brennan was none of his business but he just found it completely unacceptable. Even if the partners weren't together like that, it was obvious to a blind person that they should be, that they belonged to each other. Just the thought of either of them being with someone else made him feel angry and queasy and he had no idea where those feelings were coming from. Okay, fine, he knew exactly where the feelings were coming from. Dammit, he and Angela hadn't been able to make it work even though they loved each other and if Booth and Brennan didn't wind up together, he was going to lose what little faith he had been able to retain in love and happily ever after.

"I went by his place last night to talk to him about this," Cam explained deciding she had no choice but to come clean with them.

"So you saw her? What does she look like?" demanded Angela with vengeance in her eyes and Cam made a mental note to never seriously piss the artist off.

"No, Angela, I didn't see anyone but Booth. I told him I needed to talk to him and he said it was a bad time and we'd have to talk later. It was obvious he had someone with him." It had also been obvious what they had been doing because Booth had come to the door with his shirt unbuttoned and his hair all mussed but Cam didn't think Angela needed to hear that at the moment or ever. There was total silence in the room as everyone thought about it for several minutes then Angela turned on her heel and started purposefully from the room.

"Where are you going, Ange?" asked Hodgins quietly.

"I'm going to get that room in the basement ready," she answered not even pausing.

"Angela, we can't lock them in a room in the basement and not let them out until they work this out," Cam told her reasonably.

"Why not?" Angela snapped, not caring about being reasonable.

"Because it's kidnapping for one thing," remarked Sweets and Angela swung around, her glare telling him she hadn't forgotten about his part in this little fiasco.

"No, it's not," she argued, "it's a bad lock on the door to a room that no one checks very often. How could it be kidnapping if they went to get something from that room and got locked in and the guards didn't notice for a few days?" she finished silkily and the other three seriously considered her words.

"I'm afraid stocking it with food and water would give the game away, Ange," Hodgins finally sighed, actually liking the idea. Cam and Sweets nodded in agreement and Angela's shoulders slumped in defeat.

"If there's another woman in the picture, I'm not sure it would be a good idea to lock them in a room alone," Sweets ventured knowing only too well that without proper guidance the partners' ire with each other could get destructive rather than constructive.

"Oh my God," Angela suddenly gasped, covering her mouth with both hands and looking dismayed. "Do you think Bren knows about the other woman? Do you think that's why they're fighting so much?" Angela was horrified by that possibility. _How could Booth do that to her?_ It was obvious to everyone in the freaking world except the two of them that they were desperately in love with each other and they had gotten even closer after Booth's brain tumor. They were so close that Brennan had to know about the other woman and Angela could only imagine the kind of pain that had caused her friend. _No wonder she was yelling at the big jerk, she should kick his ass,_ thought Angela vengefully.

"That would make sense," admitted Sweets, feeling as low as a snake. He knew that Brennan loved Booth even if she wouldn't admit it, her heart had to be breaking at him being with someone else and there was no way she wouldn't know something like that as well as she knew Booth. _God, what had he done?_ As emotionally fragile as Brennan was, something like this could break her to the point that she would never recover and it was his fault. If he hadn't opened his big mouth, she and Booth could be together right now instead of him being with someone else and her nursing a broken heart.

"Well, that certainly complicates things," Hodgins sighed, sinking into a chair.

"Yes, it does," agreed Cam. She didn't bother to tell them how shocked and horrified she had been to discover Booth getting physical with some unnamed woman and she was proud to know that it had all been on behalf of Brennan. She had actually felt physically ill as she walked away from his door because she knew her friend was going to be hurt by this and it was very much her fault. She had barely slept the night before because of the guilt but the others didn't need to know that. The guilt was her cross to bear.

"Then we have to take away the complication," Angela suddenly threw out there and the other three looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean, Angela?" asked Cam cautiously because Angela was looking much too pleased with herself for it to bode well for someone.

"First of all, we need to figure out who she is," Angela's smile made the other three glad she wasn't thinking about them. Hodgins, more familiar with how her mind worked than the other two, had a good idea where she was headed with this and it wasn't any place good.

"Angela, you can't hurt her. It's not really her fault," he chided warningly. She snorted.

"I'm not going to hurt her Hodgins," she scoffed.

"What are you proposing?" asked Sweets quietly. He knew how Angela's mind worked, too. He knew he shouldn't approve the kind of plan she was likely to construct but they had to do something and it was worth at least listening to her. Even if her plan was completely unacceptable, which he was fairly certain it would be, it might spark an idea for someone else.

"We find out who she is and get rid of her," Angela responded cheerfully, very pleased with her plan but the others didn't like the look of retribution in her eyes.

"Get rid of her how?" asked Cam guardedly. Not that she expected violence to be Angela's weapon of choice but it was always better to find out these things up front. Angela walked over to Cam's desk and leaned down conspiratorially.

"I'll get my dad to take her way out into the desert and leave her. Don't worry, they'll never find the body," she said loudly enough for everyone to hear her and managed to keep a straight face as long as she didn't meet anyone's eyes. No one said a word for so long that she finally had to take a look at the others and broke into giggles at their varying degrees of horror at her suggestion. "Oh, would you people relax? I'm not going to hurt her," she told them. _Much_, she added to herself. Cam and Sweets looked relieved but Hodgins eyed her suspiciously and she couldn't really blame him because whoever the unlucky woman was, she was going to pay for causing her friend pain. She just happened to take after her father enough to have a vengeful streak a mile wide and Hodgins knew it but she didn't think he would rat her out so she just smiled sweetly at him.

"What do you really want to do, Angela?" pressed Sweets. _She really wanted to kick the other woman's ass but she couldn't very well tell the psychologist that now could she?_

"Whether she's the reason Booth and Brennan are fighting or not, she's still a problem. Right?" Receiving three nods, she continued, "We find out who she is and we break them up." She didn't include details of the little ways of making the woman and Booth suffer that were flitting through her mind, knowing the other's might find them just a tad objectionable.

"I don't really think Booth will appreciate us interfering in his personal life, Angela," said Sweets looking very uncomfortable. Angela turned on him in fury.

"It's a damned shame you didn't remember that before you felt the need to tell him who he did and didn't love, Sweets," she snapped, "then maybe we wouldn't have to interfere to clean up the mess you made." Sweets sank down into his chair and shut his mouth. Looking at Cam, she could see that she was also reluctant to interfere in Booth's personal life but she felt extremely guilty for her part in this mess. In Angela's opinion, they were fighting a war here and she didn't need soldiers that weren't willing to give it their all. Taking several deep breaths, she tried to calm herself. "Look, guys, we all know that Booth and Brennan love each other. Right?" Three nods. "And we think that Booth's new squeeze is responsible for all the hostility between them. Right?" Three nods. So far so good. "So we need to remove the point of contention. Right?" She was quite proud of her phrasing and she received three reluctant nods. "Now I _am _going to fix this but if you're not up for it, get out now. Are you in or out?" She crossed her arms over her chest and met Hodgins' eyes.

"I'm in," he said softly and she gave him a smile of gratitude for his unwavering support. Then she turned to Cam.

Cam really didn't like interfering in Booth's life but she didn't want to see him make a mistake that ruined the rest of his life either. She was sure that if he didn't work things out with Brennan, he would regret it for the rest of his life. At this point, she could only pray that Angela's plan worked and Brennan was able to forgive Booth for the other woman. She was actually praying that Brennan didn't know about the other woman, however unlikely that might be because forgiveness wasn't exactly one of the doctor's strong suits. Making up her mind, she met Angela's eyes levelly.

"I'm in," she said firmly. Angela turned to Sweets.

Sweets didn't know what to do. He had a professional obligation to the FBI and the partners that would definitely preclude his involvement in these activities. _But this wasn't professional_, he admitted to himself, _this was very personal. _ He had been devastated to learn that Booth had turned to some other woman which was kind of stupid considering he had done his best to convince the agent that he didn't want to be with Brennan. At some point during the couple's therapy, Sweets had developed a crush on Brennan but she had always belonged to Booth in his eyes and that hadn't lasted long. Now, Sweets felt like his father was cheating on his mother and he hated everything about it. He hated that Booth would do something that low, he hated the pain he had inadvertently caused Brennan but mostly he hated that he had opened his mouth in the first place. Professional obligation or not, he had to try to fix this.

"I'm in," he managed to keep the wobble out of his voice.

"Very good," Angela gave them all a very gracious smile and started barking out orders. Now that she had their cooperation, they were going to find Little Miss Homewrecker and she was going to face the Wrath of Angela. She couldn't believe how much she was looking forward to that.


	4. Chapter 4

**Okay, guys, the next chapter is a little angsty. Just take a deep breath and remember it's just a story. Please keep those reviews coming and I promise much better times are on the horizon. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Several hours later, Angela entered Brennan's office quietly and studied her friend as she answered emails. Angela couldn't believe how calm and cool Brennan looked considering the circumstances. Brennan had to be in a great deal of emotional pain and she, the worst freaking best friend in the whole world, hadn't even noticed. Sure, she had noticed that Booth and Brennan were fighting but she should have seen that her best friend was nursing a broken heart as soon as it happened and not had to have it pointed out to her. But now she knew and she was going to make all that up to Brennan, she was going to get Booth for Brennan and make the other woman pay, just like any good best friend would.

"Hey, Bren," Angela said softly, not even noticing that the tone of voice she used was usually reserved for when someone close to the person being spoken to had died. Brennan actually noticed and gave her a strange look. Angela walked over and leaned back against the desk beside her best friend.

"Hi, Ange. Is something wrong?" Brennan quizzed. The look on Angela's face was not something she was familiar with. It was a combination of pity and determination and Brennan didn't have a clue as to the cause.

"No, Sweetie, nothing's wrong," Angela assured her gently. "We just haven't really talked in a while and I was wondering how you were." The way Angela was looking at her and her tone was really creeping Brennan out but she answered the question.

"I'm fine, Ange," Brennan assured her. Angela patted her hand and muttered something under her breath. Brennan could have sworn she said, "Oh, you poor brave thing," but that didn't make any sense so she assumed she was mistaken but she wasn't mistaken that Angela was acting really, really strangely. "Ange, are you okay?" she queried. Angela looked genuinely surprised by the question.

"I'm fine, Sweetie. Why do you ask?"

"Because you're exhibiting anomalous behavior and it's kind of freaking me out," Brennan said honestly and Angela burst into laughter. She hadn't even realized that she was acting strangely but she needed to stop that right now or Brennan was going to figure out something was going on. On the off chance that Brennan didn't already know about Booth's floozy, Angela sure as hell didn't want to be the reason she figured it out.

"I'm sorry, Sweetie. I'll try to stop freaking you out," she promised with a wide grin. "Weren't you wearing a different shirt this morning?" Angela asked with a frown as she looked at the blue pullover top Brennan was wearing.

"Yes. I lost a button off of the one I wore this morning and had to change at lunch." Brennan tried to keep her voice level and hoped Angela didn't notice the blush creeping into her cheeks as she recalled just how not one but every single button had gotten separated from her shirt. Luckily, Hodgins chose that moment to stick his head in the door.

"Sorry, Dr. B, but I need to borrow Angela for a little while," he grinned. He felt like his face was going to crack under the fake grin when he wanted to go in and hug Brennan and tell her that he knew how she felt but that they were going to make it all better for her soon. He doubted that she would be thrilled to know that they knew about the problems in her personal life and he was certain she would not appreciate their interference so he settled for giving her his silent support.

"That's fine, Hodgins," she assured him with a smile.

"Okay, Hodgins," Angela turned to Brennan, leaned down and gave her a hard, unexpected hug. "We'll talk later, sweetie," she whispered and then she was gone, leaving Brennan gazing after her and wondering what the hell had gotten into her best friend. Then again, she postulated that Angela was very probably wondering the very same thing about her and she actually wanted to explain what was going on in her life to her best friend but she just couldn't do it at the moment. She could just hear Angela's squeals of delight, she thought with amusement, over the events of the past several months. With a sigh, she leaned her head back against her chair, closed her eyes and let her mind wander back to Booth's brain tumor and how it had led to that night when everything between them had changed.

When Booth had opened his eyes after being in a coma for four days following brain surgery, Brennan had felt like her heart would burst with joy. Then he had looked at her and asked "Who are you?" and she hadn't been able to breathe. She had been devastated that he didn't know who she was and what they were to each other. It hadn't taken long for him to explain what he had meant with the comment but during that short time, she had felt like the light had completely gone out of her world. _What would she do if she didn't have Booth in her life as her person? She didn't know and she didn't want to find out._

When he had told her about his dream about them being married, it had given her such a soft, warm, glowing feeling that it had scared her. She had long ago acknowledged that she was attracted to her partner and if she hadn't cared so much about him, she would have simply seduced him years ago, but she couldn't do that to him, herself or them. At first, it had been about protecting their partnership and it still was to a certain extent.

But more recently, it had become about protecting her heart because she could no longer deny to herself that she was in love with Seeley Booth and she would never survive a purely physical fling with him even if their partnership managed to weather it. She would wither away and die when he tired of her and turned to another woman and then everything that was important to her in the world would be lost because she wouldn't be able to be around him every day knowing he wasn't hers any longer. She would have no choice but to remove herself from his proximity and she didn't think she could live with that. What her life would be like without him in it had been a hard earned and never to be forgotten lesson learned at the time of his fake death and she knew for certain she wouldn't survive that again.

She might even have had the courage to tell him how she felt but for two things. Booth had made it very clear that he wasn't attracted to her when he had drawn his freaking line after breaking up with Cam. Brennan had opened her mouth to ask him how he would feel about going out with her when those words shattered her little day dreams. She knew what he was actually saying and that he just said all that about work being dangerous to keep from hurting her feelings but it hadn't worked. She had been hurt, deeply, but she had buried it and carried on just as she had learned to do from an early age. _What else could she do?_

The second reason she couldn't tell Booth about her feelings was Jared. By the time his brother showed up, Booth had her tied up in knots of confusion. He blew hot and cold with her, flirting and making subtle promises then backing off when she showed any interest at all. She was ashamed to admit that she had gone out with Jared deliberately to get a rise out of Booth, to find out, once and for all, if he had any real interest in a relationship with her. He didn't seem to have any problem with her going out with anyone else so when Jared had showed up a very, very bad idea had occurred to her. So, she had followed her gut and it had definitely come back to bite her in the ass. She had never, ever thought Booth was a loser, she had just been so appalled that he would believe that of her that she hadn't answered him fast enough when he confronted her and she had hurt the man who was the most important person in the world to her. Even though he said he had forgiven her, she didn't think he would believe her if she told him she loved him and she was afraid it would make him so uncomfortable that he would ask for a new partner so she kept silent and carried on as was her way.

She had finally decided that if she couldn't have Booth, she wanted the next best thing and had come up with the brilliant idea to ask him to father her child. Yes, she knew it was a pathetic attempt to keep him in her life forever because she knew he would never desert his child, no matter how vehemently she said she could raise the child on her own. She was just so very tired of being alone. Even thought they wouldn't be a family in the traditional sense or even the way she wanted them to be one, they would still be a family and she wanted to make a family with Booth more than anything in the world. But, instead of her getting a child, Booth had gotten a brain tumor.

She had been terrified but she had been strong for him because she could see how scared he was. She hadn't allowed her fears to show to her colleagues or Booth and she had gone into the operating room with him. She had been there because he had asked her to be but it had been horrible for her knowing that they were cutting into the brain of the man she loved and he might never be the same person again. Not that it would have mattered to her, she would have loved him even if the surgery had left him disabled but he would have hated that and it was him that she was scared for. She had fought her tears and the bile rising in her throat and stood strong because she didn't have a choice.

But she hadn't been strong when they moved him into intensive care following his surgery. She had held it together until the others had left, just barely, but she had done it. The doctor had taken one look at her mutinous expression when the nurse announced that visitin hours were over and everyone would have to go and instantly given permission for her to stay with Booth as long as she wanted. Not that she cared about the rules, it would have taken a hell of a lot more than a couple of ICU nurses and the doctor to make her leave her partner when they didn't even know whether he would wake up or not. With the lights dimmed, she had pulled a chair over to his bed and taken his hand in hers, telling herself to be strong but her stores of strength and self control were sorely depleted. She had found herself laying her head on the bed and sobbing out her fear as she gripped his lax hand tightly in hers. By morning, she had herself under control again but she hadn't left his side until the doctor asked her to step out of the room while he examined Booth after he woke from the coma.

When she returned to his side, he patted the side of the bed and she had silently gone to sit beside him. To her surprise, he had taken one of her hands and intertwined their fingers and the warmth in his eyes when he looked at her had filled all those cold lonely places in her heart and soul. She had felt hope for the first time in a long time, hope that Booth returned her feelings and that feeling had grown as he quietly told her about his coma dream. It had sounded so beautiful and perfect to her that she had to bite back tears. He had seen how she was reacting and tugged her down to lie beside him with her head resting on his chest. Without a word, they had fallen asleep like that and not woken until they were interrupted by the nurse bringing Booth's dinner.

Brennan felt like something big had changed between them and she was sure Booth felt it, too. He barely took his eyes off of her and there was a light in them she had never noticed before. He touched her every chance he got. Granted, that was nothing new but those touches lingered and she found herself happier than she could ever remember being despite the fact that they hadn't talked about how they felt. She didn't think they needed to, she knew how she felt and she was becoming more certain that he loved her with each passing hour. That had lasted all of two days. Then her dreams were shattered into dust by none other than Lance Sweets and Camille Saroyan and she had, once again, been cast adrift, alone as she was apparently destined to be for her lifetime.

It had actually started out as a good day, the third since Booth had awoken from his coma. Brennan had already been awake and working on her next book when Booth had woken and looked around the room frantically. He had relaxed the instant he saw that she was there and a beautiful, peaceful smile broke across his face. That smile warmed her heart and she smiled back. They had a pleasant breakfast and a heated debate about something so trivial that she couldn't even remember what it was. But she would never forget what had happened next.

The doctor had been in a while earlier but had gotten called away without answering all Booth's questions, promising to come back as soon as possible. He hadn't made it back yet and Booth was getting impatient. Feeling the need to keep her partner calm, Brennan had offered to go and see if she could find his doctor. She had headed out of that room a happy, content woman. She hadn't come back that way.

She had found Dr. Sweets with the neurosurgeon, standing just inside a room beside the nurses' station with the door ajar. Her hand had been on the door to push it farther open and enter the room when their conversation stopped her in her tracks. They were studying two separate brain scans of Booths, one from when he was in a coma and one from afterward. She was relieved to hear that the entire tumor had been removed and there was no sign of bleeding or any other complications related to the surgery. She was disturbed to hear them discuss the fact that Booth's brain scans indicated that he had been in love while he was in the coma and that the post coma scan showed that he definitely wasn't in love. But she could have handled that if Sweets hadn't chosen that moment to tell the neurosurgeon that in his opinion, Booth had created his ideal woman in his coma and he had truly loved her. According to Sweets, it was only coincidence that the woman was based on Brennan and he was gravely concerned that Booth would make the mistake of thinking he loved the real Dr. Brennan.

Brennan refused to acknowledge how badly it hurt that he apparently didn't think her worthy of Booth's love. Sweets was a psychologist and she didn't even believe in his science, she reminded herself before she fell apart. She shattered anyway when the neurosurgeon, someone whose science she had trusted to save her partner's life, was in complete agreement with Sweets' theory and suggested that it would be a very good idea for Brennan to be kept away from Booth during his recovery until he could get his head on straight. She turned and walked back toward Booth's room so crushed that she couldn't even form a coherent thought.

Booth was in a wheelchair, being wheeled out of the room when she walked in. He took one look at her face and stopped the nurse.

"Hey, what's wrong, Baby?" he asked, grabbing her hand and pulling her toward him, not even noticing what he had called her. Brennan noticed but didn't say anything because he had been calling her that with increasing frequency for the last couple of days and she had loved it. Now it broke her heart to know he didn't mean it for her at all, but for that made up woman from his coma.

"Nothing's wrong, Booth," she assured him with the best smile she could manage and squeezed his hand reassuringly. He didn't look like her believed her.

"I need to get you downstairs for that scan, Mr. Booth," the nurse reminded him gently. Booth didn't take his eyes off Brennan and waved the nurse off impatiently.

"I have a little bit of a headache, Booth," she told him and it wasn't a lie, her head was pounding. "I'm fine. Go get your scan," she encouraged, her eyes drinking in the way he was looking at her because she wanted to remember it forever.

"Okay, but you take something for your head," he instructed and she nodded jerkily. He rubbed his cheek against the back of her hand and reluctantly released it, finally allowing the nurse to wheel him out of the room. Brennan watched him and she wanted to curl up on the floor and cry out her broken heart but she had learned long ago that helplessly railing against the curves life threw your way was illogical and pointless. She needed information.

Twenty minutes later, she looked at her laptop with tears in her eyes. According to all the information she could find, experiments conducted by some of the most renowned scientist's in the world supported Booth's neurosurgeon and Dr. Sweets' theory. They had some very valid points that broke Brennan's heart. She wanted to be with Booth more than anything in the world but not if he didn't want to be with her, the real Brennan, not his dream woman. _What was she going to do?_ Unfortunately, the person she always went to when she was hurt and confused and needed advice of this sort was the one at the center of all this confusion. She couldn't even ask him how he felt about her because she didn't think he really knew and she couldn't bear for him to hold out the promise of heaven and then take it away later.

"Is something wrong, Dr. Brennan?" asked Cam softly from the doorway as she entered the room and caught sight of Brennan's pale, drawn face. Brennan's head snapped up and she wanted to yell at Cam just because she was there. She wanted to strike out at someone and make them hurt like she was hurting but it would be unfair of her to take her pain out on Cam, she repeated to herself over and over.

Cam studied Brennan closely. She could tell the anthropologist was upset. _Well, so was she._ One of her oldest, dearest friends had just gone through having a brain tumor removed and she had been effectively shut out. Booth and Brennan had formed their little circle of two and everyone else had been superfluous. Cam knew it was irrational for her to feel this way but that didn't stop the feelings of resentment toward Dr. Brennan rising up. She had intellectually accepted that she and Booth were over and that he would wind up with Brennan one day. Hell, she had even done her best to keep Brennan from sleeping with Jared and ruining her chances with Booth. _Oh, who the hell was she kidding?_ She had done that to keep Booth from getting hurt, she had barely considered Brennan's feelings at all.

She and Brennan had a much better relationship now than they had when Cam had first joined the team and they now respected each other as colleagues and were even casual friends. Cam had thought she was prepared to see Booth and Brennan together knowing they were in an intimate relationship but she was finding that wasn't true at all. Her heart ached at the pure happiness and adoration in his voice when Booth talked about how things had been in his dream and when he looked at the other woman, Cam had seen something in his eyes that she'd always wanted to see there for herself but never had. He loved this woman with all his heart. It was in the way he touched her, the way he spoke to her, the way he called her baby. Cam knew he had been hung up on Brennan even when he was with her but actually seeing how much he loved the other woman was stirring emotions she wasn't prepared for. She was feeling jealous and possessive and knew she had no right to feel that way but she couldn't seem to stop.

"I'm fine," Brennan said stiffly, her mind on what she had just heard and read. For the first time in memory, Brennan's logical, rational mind had completely shut down and she didn't know what to do. She looked at Cam and debated on talking to her about what was going on. She respected the woman as a colleague and even liked her well enough but she had never really forgiven her for sleeping with Booth. She couldn't help but think Cam had done it at least in part to hurt her because of their difficulties when Cam first came to the Jeffersonian. Regardless of the reason, it had been a slap in the face that even Brennan could recognize. But they had all gotten past that and Cam had known Booth for a long time. _Perhaps she would have some insight that could make the pain radiating from her chest stop_, Brennan told herself. It was worth a shot because she didn't like this feeling at all.

Cam watched Brennan's face and saw that whatever she was looking at on her computer screen disturbed her greatly. Nonchalantly walking over and pretending to look out the glass wall of the room, Cam looked at the screen out of the corner of her eye and saw Brennan was apparently researching the validity of brain scans being used to verify emotions. Cam hated herself for the thoughts that began to parade through her brain but she couldn't shut them out. She would not act on them, she vowed. She wanted Booth to be happy and Booth wanted this woman. _Or did he really?_ Cam had never really seen him look at Brennan like he did now before the surgery. _Was that just the changes from him surgery lowering his inhibitions enough to do what he'd always wanted to do or did he have this woman confused with the one in his dream?_ _And if he was confused, wasn't it her responsibility as one of his oldest and closest friends to help him figure things out? And how could he possibly do that with Brennan standing guard over him?_ It would really be for his benefit for her to be out of the picture for a while, Cam assured herself righteously. _She would not do this_, Cam told herself and determinedly turned her thoughts to something else

"Is everything all right with Booth?" Cam queried with real concern in her voice and that made up Brennan's mind but she couldn't just blurt the whole thing out. It was personal, painful and humiliating but Cam cared about Booth, too and this was really about doing what was best for him so she would have to do this subtly.

"Booth is doing well, Cam," Brennan told her quietly and Cam could hear the caring and concern in her voice. "Cam, has he told you about his dream when he was in the coma?" Brennan asked, biting her lip and her voice told Cam this was really important to the other woman.

"Yes," Cam admitted, doing her best to keep the jealousy out of her voice. Not that she thought Dr. Brennan would recognize jealousy in someone else but she didn't want to take the chance. Putting the current conversation together with Brennan's research, Cam turned away to hide her slightly malicious smile. "You're concerned that Booth is confusing you with the woman in his dream," she stated confidently and saw Brennan's eyes widen in her reflection on the glass wall of the room. "I think that's a very valid concern, Dr. Brennan," Cam continued without giving Brennan a chance to answer. "What are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know," Brennan whispered and Cam saw her head was lowered and her hands were twisting together in her lap. She frantically told herself to stop but she didn't.

"Weren't you scheduled to be out of the country now, Dr. Brennan?" she asked suddenly and Brennan's head came up as if she had forgotten Cam was even in the room.

"Yes, I was scheduled to be in Guatemala," she replied quietly. Cam knew that Booth would kill her if he ever found out about this conversation but she strongly felt that it needed to be done, her friend was confused about his feelings for the other woman and that made him vulnerable. He needed some time away from her to think things through and regain his perspective. She simply didn't want to see him make the biggest mistake of his life, she assured herself, ignoring her conscience that was screaming at her not to do this to the vulnerable woman in front of her.

"Are you going?" she asked quietly, linking her fingers together and looking at them so she didn't feel quite as guilty about what she was doing. She finally looked up to see Brennan looking at her as if she had lost her mind.

"Of course, I'm not going, Cam," she said incredulously. "Booth just had a large tumor removed from his brain and he needs me," she spoke slowly as if the other woman wasn't capable of understanding normal speech and Cam almost smiled at the typical Brennan attitude.

"I think you should go," she said quietly, looking down at her linked fingers and missing the flash of hurt in Brennan's eyes. To be perfectly honest, it probably wouldn't have made Cam stop but it would have at least made her realize how badly she was hurting someone who didn't deserve it.

Brennan had no idea what she had done but Cam apparently didn't trust her to be around Booth and she had to admit that really hurt because she would never willingly hurt him. Her pride demanded that she not allow the other woman to know she had the ability to hurt her so her spine stiffened and she gave Cam her haughtiest look. "Then it's a good thing it's not up to you, isn't it, Cam? I'll be here as long as Booth needs me," she added indignantly, taking refuge in anger from all the hurt boiling inside her.

"May I be frank with you, Dr. Brennan?" Cam asked, meeting her eyes levelly.

"Certainly," snapped Brennan, crossing her arms over her chest, wanting her to say whatever it was she felt she needed to say and get the hell out.

"Booth has been through a very traumatic experience and he's confused about a lot of things," she began in her sweetest voice but Brennan wasn't buying it for a moment.

"Just say what you mean, Cam," she demanded and Cam actually hesitated for a long moment.

"Fine," Cam snapped, her jealousy making the words coming out of her mouth cruel, deliberately hurtful. "Booth had a dream where the two of you were together, but you, Dr. Brennan, are not that woman. That woman doesn't exist and Booth needs some time to realize that. Right now he looks at you and sees her and I don't want to see him make a mistake because of that." Cam had turned away from Brennan because she didn't want to see the other woman's face, not that she thought the other woman was in love with Booth because she thought Brennan was too oblivious for that to happen any time soon, but because she knew she was being cruel and bitchy and she couldn't look Brennan in the face while she did it. "You should want that even less than I do, Dr. Brennan. Doesn't it bother you at all for him to be thinking of someone else when he looks at you?" She turned back to Brennan as she delivered that last vicious remark and knew instantly that she had just made the biggest mistake of Booth's life.

Brennan's face was absolutely white, every drop of blood drained away. She looked as if Cam had just driven a knife through her heart and Cam had never seen the kind of pain that was in Brennan's eyes. She knew then that Brennan loved Booth and that she had just done something horrible because of her pettiness. She felt like the wicked witch of the west, like she had just pulled the wings off butterflies and she had the sinking feeling that she had just ruined two lives.

Every word that came out of Cam's mouth felt like glass slicing into Brennan causing her pain to grow by leaps and bounds but she couldn't dispute a single word because they were all true. Every single, awful, hateful word was only the truth and she had asked for it so she had no one to blame but herself. She knew that Cam was only trying to protect Booth and she couldn't blame her for that. And suddenly, she knew what she needed to do. She needed to give her partner some time and space and she knew she would never be able to stay away from him if she remained in DC. She picked up her laptop and stood to face Cam with what dignity she could manage.

"Please tell Booth that I'll see him when I get back from Guatemala," she said quietly, her voice thick with tears.

"No," Cam said quickly, grabbing for Brennan's arm. But Brennan sidestepped the move and her look told Cam not to try that again. She headed for the door as if Cam no longer existed. "Dr. Brennan, I was completely out of line and I'm sorry," said Cam desperately following her down the hallway. Brennan never even glanced at her. "Dr. Brennan, please don't go," she pleaded as Brennan stepped onto the elevator. "What am I supposed to tell Booth?" she asked, hoping the mention of her partner would change Brennan's mind.

"Tell him I know he'll be fine and I'll see him when I get back," Brennan finally answered, meeting Cam's eyes for the first time since walking out of Booth's room. "I know you'll take good care of him, Cam," her voice was mocking and Cam knew she wasn't quite as oblivious as she had previously thought. "After all, that's exactly what you wanted wasn't it?" The elevator doors closed before a shamed Cam could come up with an answer.

Cam slowly walked back to Booth's room, completely disgusted with herself. She couldn't believe she had deliberately done that to someone who was as emotionally fragile as Brennan was. She might as well have just taken out a gun and shot her. It was even worse when Booth was brought back to his room and she had to tell him that Brennan was gone. She, of course, didn't share her role in the fiasco and he was, unfortunately, left with the impression that Brennan had only been waiting to make sure he would recover before carrying on with her life, that his little brain tumor and recovery wasn't important enough for her to cancel a trip out of the country. He had tried repeatedly to call Brennan but got no answer. It had taken Cam two hours to calm him down and then she went by Brennan's place to try to talk her out of going and to apologize for her appalling behavior, but it was too late. By the time Cam knocked on the apartment door, Brennan was on a plane to Guatemala.


	5. Chapter 5

**I accidentally wiped out my files of this story and am having to reconstruct them to post. I should be able to get caught up sometime tomorrow then I will be out of town for a few days. Thanks to all for your response so far to please keep those reviews coming. Enjoy. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Six weeks later, Brennan had returned to DC, tired and sick at heart. While excavating mass graves, she had been able to put her pain aside and concentrate on her work but she hadn't forgotten a thing. At night, when she managed to sleep at all, she dreamed of Booth and her together just like she had written it and she awoke every single morning to feel as if her soul had been stripped bare. Her ability to compartmentalize had completely deserted her and she didn't know how she was going to handle being close to him every day feeling this way. It didn't help that Angela picked her up at the airport and took her to see that psychic and the two of them ripped her heart out all over again with their little show, especially when the child she wanted so much was mentioned. Brennan pretended indifference but she really wanted to scream at them to stop it, to just leave her alone and let her lick her wounds in peace.

Then they had gone to her office and Booth was there. He looked a little tired and thinner but he was the most beautiful sight Brennan had ever seen. He had hugged her and she had closed her eyes, just savoring being this close to him. She had wanted to push him back onto the sofa, crawl into his lap and never move, to demand to know if he had decided if he loved her or not but his actions make the answer to that question obvious so she had called on her inner strength and done her level best to be the same partner as she had always been.

She had done her best to avoid being alone with Cam but the determined the woman had finally managed to catch her in her office before Brennan saw her coming. Cam looked hesitant and embarrassed but resolute as she entered the office and closed the door behind her. Her eyes met Brennan's unwavering stare and then darted away as she slowly approached Brennan's desk. She, unsurprisingly, wasn't invited to take a seat so she stood uncomfortably, took a deep breath and tried to make things right.

"Dr. Brennan, I don't know what to say other than I had no right to interfere in your life like that. I had no right to speak to you like I did and I am truly, truly sorry." Cam hadn't had a good night's sleep since that fateful evening in the hospital. She was disgusted with herself for turning into a jealous teenager and pitching a hissy fit when it looked like her ex-boyfriend liked someone else. She was tormented by the fact that she had deliberately used Brennan's weaknesses to cause the other woman maximum pain. And she knew her taunts had hit the target, Brennan had been hurt, very badly. But she hadn't been the only one. Booth had been almost inconsolable when he realized that Brennan had actually gone Guatemala. He had been so upset that Cam just hadn't been able to find the courage to tell him that it was her fault. She had known it was low to allow him to think Brennan just didn't care enough to stay but her jealousy and guilt had kept her quiet.

Brennan looked at Cam and felt an anger so strong that it was almost frightening sweep over her. She wanted to hurt Cam, whether it was mental or physical pain didn't really matter, she just wanted to see the other woman suffer but she wouldn't allow herself to do that. Yes, she knew that Cam had been mean and spiteful at the hospital and she was unsure of the reasoning behind that but that didn't change the fact that everything the other woman had said was the truth. Despite the way she had chosen to go about it, Cam had only been trying to protect a vulnerable friend. She, too, would have done whatever was necessary to protect Booth from anything she saw as a threat so how could she blame Cam for doing the same thing? Giving the other woman and icy look of hauteur, Brennan nodded her acknowledgment of the apology, unable to bring herself to speak to Cam when it wasn't absolutely necessary.

Cam swallowed hard at that look. She honestly had no idea what she had expected to happen between her and Booth with Brennan out of the picture but less than 24 hours after Brennan had left, Cam had come to her senses and realized just how royally she had screwed up the lives of two people who obviously cared about each other very much. She just had no idea how to fix it.

She had tried to bring up the subject of how Brennan had left with Booth but he had completely shut down on her and informed her that he didn't want to talk about it. Every time she had mentioned Brennan's name, he looked so lost and sad that she finally just stopped, not wanting to cause him any more pain than she already had. She had tried to contact Brennan by telephoneand through her Jeffersonian contacts to tell her that Booth needed her and beg her to come home but had been unable to get the anthropologist to respond. She had seen Brennan intimidating, distant and even unapproachable but the look on her face now clearly said that she wasn't interested in anything that Cam had to say. Cam gave it a shot anyway.

"I'm going to tell Booth what I said to you at the hospital," Cam said firmly.

"Why?" Brennan asked, genuinely curious.

"_Why_?" Cam repeated incredulously. "Because he needs to know, Dr. Brennan," she began hotly only to see Brennan vehemently shaking her head.

"No, he doesn't, Dr. Saroyan," she disagreed and Cam blanched at the formal address and the absolute lack of emotion in Brennan's voice. "As you so eloquently put it, Booth was confused and he needed time to figure things out. We were both a little confused but it would appear that our time apart was beneficial for us both. Booth and I are partners, Dr. Saroyan, nothing more and there's absolutely no point in upsetting him by bringing all of that back up." It broke Brennan's heart to utter those words that were, after all, only the truth. At least, they were the truth from Booth's point of view.

Cam was stunned and very, very confused at the truth she heard in Brennan's words. Had Brennan's feelings for Booth changed during the short time that they had been apart? She was certain that Booth's feelings for the anthropologist hadn't changed and she just wanted to blurt that out but she had interfered in this woman's life enough and she knew it. Besides, she doubted that Brennan would believe it coming from her. This was something that only Booth was going to be able to convince her of and even he wouldn't have an easy time of it. Plus he had better be damned sure he knew what he was doing when he did it or he would shatter this strong, capable woman. Cam had never, ever wanted to see that happen even when they had strongly disliked each other and she knew that Booth would never be able to live with something like that on his conscience. At the moment, all she could do was stay out of it and pray very hard that they found their way.

"Okay," cam said softly, "again, I am very, very sorry for the way I spoke to you." Brennan's head nodded sharply, she just wanted Cam to finish whatever she had to say and leave her in peace. That was more than apparent to Cam so she closed her mouth, looked at Brennan in concern and finally took herself off to her own office.

Brennan hadn't really expected an apology from Cam even though she had secretly thought she deserved one if only for the way the other woman had spoken to her. _Well_, _that was over with_, she told herself stoically, _now she could get back to the case and trying to figure out how to deal with her partner._ She wanted to be able to act the same way she always had with him that that was going to be difficult because booth was different, in a minutia of subtle little ways. She would simply do the best she could, they would get through this case and she would figure out how to be his partner and only his partner as she went along. That resolve had lasted right up until she had done something stupid and he had burst in to save her from the bad guy, just like he always did. He had called her baby and it had been all she could to not to cry like one at the feelings the endearment evoked.

She was embarrassed to admit that she had even gone to Avalon for a reading. Granted, she had been on drugs and not thinking straight at the time and she had used the excuse of making sure the self-proclaimed psychic hadn't run away. But the real reason was she didn't know how to deal with her feelings and this new Booth. Her heart fluttered in her chest when Avalon told her that Booth saw the real her and was dazzled by it. She, unfortunately, felt that she had an abundance of evidence to the contrary and head been even more confused when she left the psychic.

Then had come the best and worst moment of her life. Walking along the sidewalk, he had told her he loved her and the joy those three little words had elicited had been unbelievable. She had been filled with the warmth of the sun, all the cold and lonely places in her heart and soul suffused with healing light. With her heart beating fast, she had opened her mouth to return the sentiment but she should have known that it wouldn't last. Her life wasn't about things that made her happy and she saw that it never would be when he qualified that he loved her in _an atta girl kind of way_. She didn't even really know what that meant that she was certain it wasn't the way she wanted him to love her so she had returned those sentiments and quickly excused herself saying she was tired. And she was more tired of the loneliness, the constant aching feeling of loss in her chest for something she'd never really had than words could possibly express. She had gone home and cried herself to sleep.

In the morning, she had dragged herself out of bed, taken a good, long look at herself in the mirror and decided that enough was enough. Booth loved her as a friend and partner but not in any romantic way and it was painfully obvious that he never would. It was time for her to accept that. She couldn't keep letting it cut her up like this, she was dying a little more inside every day and it had to stop. Right now, Booth was as lost and confused as she was, admittedly about very different things but she couldn't put an even bigger strain on him by messing up their partnership. He had always been there for her, now it was her turn to be there for him, to smooth the way and get their partnership back on an even keel, to help him find his way again. She and Booth would continue to be partners and friends and that was that. They would remain steady constants in each other's lives like they always had been and she had to put these silly daydreams aside before they drove her crazy. With that resolve behind her, she had slowly found her way again and was finally beginning to find some peace when a case had come along that shattered that peace and changed her life forever.


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay, I found a hard copy of part of the story but I'm having to manually input it so I will post as I go. Please keep the reviews coming and I promise the angst will be ending soon and in a big way. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth was confused. About a lot of things. But mostly about his partner. He had been in love with his infuriating partner for longer than he could remember. He'd known it and he'd had a plan. He was going to teach her to trust again, teach her to believe in love and gently woo her. The waiting was making him crazy but he knew it would be worth it in the end when they wound up together. Everything had been right on schedule. Until his brain tumor had turned everything upside down.

He'd had that dream and it had been so real that it had broken his heart when he had awoken and none of it was real. He knew that Sweets and the others thought his dream had been triggered by the book Brennan had been writing and her reading it aloud to him but he knew better. The surroundings may have been influenced by Brennan's story that that fantasy of how good things were between them was his hearts greatest desire. What he hoped would be the culmination of so many years of loving his partner from afar and putting what he thought she needed from him above what he wanted from her.

He had opened his eyes and seen the joy in her face as she looked down at him. He had been confused for a moment as his mind tried to process what he knew where his real memories and his heart fought to hold onto the fantasy, not wanting to let this imaginary woman that he loved so much go. Then he had looked into blue eyes brimming with hurt and confusion when she had misunderstood his question of who are you and he had known he didn't have to let that woman go. The woman in his fantasy had been the same one sitting before him, his Bones, his partner and best friend, the love of his life. He had decided right then and there that the waiting was over. As soon as he got a clean bill of health he was going to go after this woman with everything he had. He was going to convince her that he loved her. And he was sure as hell going to erase that damned line and persuade her that they could be happy together. He never got the chance.

Brennan had been at his side for three days after his coma and he couldn't take his eyes off of her or stop touching her. And she frequently came close, inviting those touches with a soft smile, her eyes telling him how much she cared about him and how glad she was that he was okay. He had to back his tongue constantly to keep from blurting out that he loved her but he wanted to do this right. And he needed to be on his feet when he told her, not laid up in the hospital. Then something had gone very wrong and he had no idea what. Brennan had gone looking for his doctor and had come back upset. She had assured him it was just a headache and he had believed her, allowing the nurse to take him for a brain scan and when he had gotten back to his room she had been gone. To freaking Guatemala.

He had just come through a major, life-threatening, potentially life-changing event and the one person he needed at his side to help him through it had deserted him to dig up long dead bodies in some jungle. He couldn't believe how much that hurt or how abandoned, unloved and unworthy her actions made him feel. And his heart broke as he realized there was no way she could have left him if she loved him and he watched his dreams go up in smoke. She hadn't even had the decency to say goodbye, she had just given Cam a message for him and blithely gone on her way as if he didn't matter, as if she didn't care enough to bother to change her plans or even say goodbye in person. He could almost hear her thought processes as she reasoned it out. _The doctor had said he would be a fine and they were only partners so why should she interrupt her life?_ He was so hurt and angry that he barely noticed Cam was there, harshly snapping that he didn't want to talk about it when she brought up Brennan.

He might not have wanted to talk about her but Sweets had barely let him talk about anything else while she was gone and he sure as hell couldn't stop thinking about her. No matter how hurt and angry he was or how much he told himself it was never going to happen, he dreamed of her every night. And it wasn't the same dream he'd had in the hospital. It was much, much worse. Every single night he had to watch them go to work and live the lives they had now but those lives were so different as to be almost unrecognizable because they were together. They still chased the bad guys but they were in love and each of them was secure enough in their relationship to openly show it and that changed everything. It made each and every day together even more exciting and precious and God, the things that happened behind closed doors left him hard and aching. He awoke every single morning his body aching with unfulfilled desire and his heart aching from the knowledge that those dreams would never become reality.

Luckily, everyone had assumed any moping behavior was because of the brain tumor and he didn't bother to disabuse them of the notion. He had finally convinced Sweets that he was ready to go back to work on the very day that Brennan was scheduled to return. To his shame, his eagerness to see her hadn't even been dimmed by his broken heart so he had hung out in her office until she got there. She had almost sat on him being in she had been in his arms and he hadn't cared about anything else. It wasn't important that she didn't love him or that she had left him when he needed her. They were in each other's arms where they belonged and that was the only thing that mattered. Even knowing that she didn't love him, it was all he could do to stop himself from blurting out his love for her. Letting her go that morning had been one of the hardest things he'd ever had to do that he had no choice. She didn't belong to him and they had to get to work.

The case had involved a psychic named Avalon who had known things that she shouldn't. Booth didn't necessarily believe in psychics but he knew there were things that couldn't be explained by Brennan's science so when Avalon had told him that Brennan was in danger he hadn't taken any chances. And she had been right, he had arrived and killed a man just as he was trying to hurt his Bones. He'd had no words to describe the terror he felt at the realization that he could have lost her or the relief he felt as he pulled her into his arms and thanked God that she was okay. It felt so natural to him that he hadn't even noticed when he had called her baby and kissed the top of her head and he had known then, that despite Sweets' theory and so-called evidence to the contrary, he loved this woman with all his heart.

The warm fuzzies it gave him to hold Brennan in his arms was partially cancel out by his self-directed anger over the fact that he hadn't gotten there in time to save her from being hurt. He couldn't help but wonder if he was 100% following his surgery and he determined then and there to do a better job protecting her. He also decided to tell her how he felt. In the hospital, he hadn't wanted to tell her that he loved her until he was back on his feet. Well, he was on his feet now as they walked down the sidewalk and he thought he was pretty much back to normal. Right up until he reached out and squeezed that clown's nose and Brennan looked at him like she had no idea who he was. That look had stopped him in his tracks. He remembered his old terror and hatred of clowns but when he looked at that particular clown, he felt none of those old emotions and that scared the crap out of him.

_Was he back to normal? If he fear of clowns had undergone such a drastic change, what else was different about him? Could he truly trust anything he felt? Could Sweets be right about his feelings for Bones? No, _his heart scoffed instantly, _you felt this way about her long before the coma_. Booth truly believe that but, in that instant, he felt like he didn't know himself at all and he sure is hell didn't trust himself, in his current condition called with something as fragile as Brennan's heart, especially after Cams cautionary words drifted across his mind. His instinct to protect Brennan from everything, even himself, kicked in.

He had tried to stop the words from escaping but hadn't able to hold them back and it had been an amazing to say something that he had repressed for so long. Even if he had immediately ruined it with this stupid qualifier that had amounted to another line drawn in the sand by none other than himself. Lines that he would personally erase just to soon as he proved to her and to himself that he was back to normal, he assured himself that a mantle of sadness settled over him. Would that day really ever come? Interestingly enough he had received the answer to that question from Avalon. Her assurances that things worked out between him and Brennan in the end gave him at least a little hope to hold onto. He had grabbed it with both hands and settled in to get back to normal and his partner have been right beside him the whole time, offering encouragement and reassurances, even helping him fix his plumbing. They had drawn closer and closer and things had seemed to be better than ever between them. He thought about telling her that he loved her every single day but he didn't think she was ready to hear it yet. He wanted to give them both time to realize he was back to normal and, truthfully, he loved the way they were lately and didn't want to rock the boat. Then Andrew Hacker had come on the scene and the boat had very nearly overturned.

Booth hadn't really had much contact with Hacker and had no real feelings about him one way or the other until Brennan blurted out that Hacker wanted to have sex with her. He had definitely had feelings about the man then and they were all bad. He wanted to take out his gun and shoot Hacker or, at the very least, beat the crap out of him for even thinking about his Bones like that. He didn't want anyone else within a mile of the woman he considered his but he couldn't really tell her that if she was interested in the other man so he had only said he didn't think it was a good idea. _What else could he do? _It wasn't like he could demand that she not date his boss's boss because, he remembered with some discomfort, he had dated her boss without regard to her feelings on the matter, he had even hid that fact from her as long as possible.

Looking back he could clearly see what a mistake that whole relationship had been and he was more than a little ashamed of himself. He had truly cared about Cam but the very fact that it had made him uncomfortable for Brennan to know they were intimately involved and that he had willingly chosen his partner's company over that of his lover told him his heart had never been in it. He'd just been too blind to understand why. But his eyes were wide open now, he was just having a little trouble focusing because of the haze of jealousy hanging over him.

The case had been more than a little weird to him but he had never seen Brennan more excited. She had been so animated over the case that she had bonded with Daisy Wicks and that was saying something considering that she had fired the young woman twice and Sweets had practically begged on bended knee for her to give his girlfriend another chance. She had reluctantly agreed but, by the end of the case, her estimation of Ms. Wicks had certainly improved.

Booth's estimation of Hacker, however, had not. He seriously debated over warning the man off when he had asked point-blank if Booth and Brennan were involved but he had wound up giving the standard answer as much as he had hated to do so. Brenna would kill him if she knew, but he had been at the lab while she was at dinner with Hacker and he had insisted she be called back in when the squints had found something. He knew that was low and petty but he couldn't stand the thought of how the evening might end otherwise. He had almost bitten off his tongue to hold back his jealous words for days but he had gotten the opportunity to express some of his angst when he discovered Brennan had discussed him with Hacker after he had explicitly asked her not to.

He had wanted to rant and rave and tell her that she belonged to him and had no business going out with someone else but until he found the courage to tell her he loved her for real, he didn't have that right. So he had done his best to convey his feelings in only a few words. As far as he was concerned, "What's between us is ours" had said it all. He hadn't been sure she had truly understood what he had meant until that night at the Museum when she had taken him to the Anok exhibit and cited his words back to him as the reason she didn't invite Andrew. He had come within a hair's breadth of pulling her into his arms and kissing her senseless but they had been called back to the party by the squints. Waving them off, she had stepped closer and reached up to straighten his already straight tie and he had seen something in her eyes that made his breath catch in his throat and his body respond instantly. He had reached out and brushed a strand of hair back over her shoulder, wanting to prolong the intimate moment as long as possible, not knowing when the next opportunity to touch her like that would come. It had come much, much sooner than he would ever have imagined.


	7. Chapter 7

**I know the chapters are shorter than my usual but hopefully you still enjoy them. Please keep up the reviews. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Brennan was momentarily startled from her reverie by clattering outside her office. Glancing at the door, she saw that someone from housekeeping had dropped a waste paper basket. Settling more deeply into her chair, her mind immediately turned back in time picking up where she had left off.

By the time Andrew Hacker had asked her out, she had thought she had her feelings for Booth under control. Her partner had been so dubious of his own abilities in all facets of his life when she returned from Guatemala that her broken heart had taken a back seat. Her entire focus had been on giving Booth the support and encouragement he needed to find his footing again. And he had been slowly getting there. He was almost back to the same man she had known before his surgery. There might always be little differences but that didn't matter to her. What hand he held his coffee cup and didn't change who he was, the inner person that she admired, respected and loved so very much.

She had thought it would be difficult to be around him feeling the way she did but it wasn't. It seemed as if they grew closer every day and he was sweet and tender with her in a way he'd never been before. Every second that she spent with him, some of her hurt and anger drained away and she was finally left just loving him with all her heart, her longing for them to be together, once again almost out of control. She had to constantly remind herself that all these new reactions weren't for her, that he was remembering the woman in his dream and responding to her and not to the real Brennan to keep from grabbing him and doing all sorts of forbidden things to his body. They spent almost every second of every day together and it was making her crazy but she couldn't make herself stop which made her even crazier. And when they weren't actually together, she was thinking about him. She had gotten to the point that she didn't even care if he loved the imaginary woman instead of the real her and she realized that if she didn't find a distraction fast, she wasn't going to be able to stop herself from dragging Booth to bed at the first chance she got.

Then they had gotten the mummy case and she had the chance to change history. She absolutely loved ancient remains and she'd been thrilled with the investigation and the opportunity it presented. Thrilled enough to bond with Ms. Wicks, she admitted with an inner smile, remembering how Booth had teased her about that. The case had taken her mind off Booth for whole hours at a time and it had been kind of nice to have her inner peace restored, to not be constantly tormenting herself with the fact that it wasn't his fault he didn't love her like she loved him, that this was her problem and that she had to get past it before it affected their partnership.

Then Andrew Hacker had walked into Booth's office and she had seen salvation. She had met him a couple of times before and he had made his interest in her plain both times but she had never really given him any encouragement. Looking at him almost clinically she saw that he wasn't nearly as handsome as Booth but, then again, she didn't think anyone was as handsome as Booth. But he was interested in her and she desperately needed a diversion before she gave in to her desires and ruined her partnership with Booth so she had flirted with Hacker and he had asked her out. It was time for her to stop mooning over her partner and get on with her life so she had said yes. She had found Hacker moderately physically attractive and he was charming and witty and she had never chosen her romantic interests based solely on feelings. _It hadn't been quite as ruthless and cold-blooded as it seemed in retrospect_, she assured herself. And when she had told Booth that Hacker wanted to have sex with her, she had only been giving him fair warning, a courtesy he hadn't extended to her when he had been dating Cam. _Okay, fine, some little part of her had hoped he would throw a jealous fit and demand she not date anyone except him put those dreams had gone up in flames when he had simply said he didn't think it was a good idea for her to date his boss._ She had almost snorted. He _so _didn't want to go there with her.

She had gone out to dinner with Hacker and had even done her best to simulate interest in their conversation. Her mind had been so filled with Booth that the egg in the meatloaf story had popped out before she even realized it, even though Booth had made it clear he would object to her and Hacker discussing him. Brennan had actually been a little relieved when she had been called back to the lab because she hadn't been enjoying herself that much, despite her best efforts and appearances to the contrary. She had offered to reschedule with Andrew on Friday as her treat because she was desperately trying to convince herself that she was interested in him even though things had felt a little stiff to her and she couldn't help comparing those feelings to be easy familiarity and comfort she felt in Booth's company.

She had been feeling a little like she was using Andrew and guilty because of it when Angela had started questioning her at the lab. She knew that Angela had been living vicariously through the sexual exploits of her coworkers while she was celibate and hadn't been surprised when the artist eagerly questioned her about her date. She had been surprised and a little hurt over the artist's apparent objection to her dating Booth's boss's boss. No one had bothered to get all disapproving when Booth had been dating Cam and yes, she would admit that she was holding just a tad of a grudge over that one. Stung, she had come back with the first thing that had popped into her mind, that with Andrew there was the possibility of sex, even though the thought of sex with him did absolutely nothing for her.

Her attention was caught by Angela's response. "And with Booth there's not?" The erotic images provoked by the question definitely did something for her and, for the first time in their partnership, Brennan didn't correct Angela that she and Booth had a professional relationship rather than a personal one. Angela diverted her with the evidence she had found but that question had stayed in Brennan's mind for days, repeating over and over. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop the erotic images that flashed through her head right behind the question. Images of her and Booth twined together on her bed getting all hot and sweaty that left her short of breath and so aroused that she could barely sit still. After a couple of days of that, for one crazy, split second, she had even considered having sex with Andrew to relieve the tension. She was the first to admit that it wouldn't be the first time she had used physical release to relieve all kinds of frustrations but just the thought of having sex with anyone other than Booth had made her feel a little queasy and very guilty. _What the hell was she going to do?_ She had absolutely no idea but she was going to have to reason it out and come up with something other than seducing her partner which was what her body and heart were strongly urging her to do. _That was completely out of the question,_ she assured herself virtuously.

_Why is it out of the question?_ asked her yearning heart and she was brought up short by the question. Because they were friends and partners and even great sex wasn't worth messing that up for. As painful as it was to be around Booth feeling all this unreciprocated love, it would be a thousand times worse if he wasn't in her life and she couldn't take the chance of driving him away by seducing him. _Nope, not buying it_, her heart replied. _This isn't about sex and you know it_. Okay, fine, she did know it and she admitted to herself that she was terrified of rejection from this man. She knew it would irreparable break her heart. _He told you he loves you._ She snorted silently remembering how she had felt when he had told her that. Elated then crushed when he had qualified the words. No he didn't love her. He loved the woman he had created in his dream that just happened to look like her.

_And why do you think she looked like you? Why not someone from his past? Or a model or a movie star or just someone else he made up? Why you? _ Now that was an interesting question and one she hadn't really given a lot of thought to. Why had his dream woman looked like her? _Because he's attracted to you, at the very least. _ Well, yeah, she would have to have been blind _and_ stupid for the last five years not to figure out that Booth found her attractive and she was neither. She had been aware of the sexual tension between them far longer than she would ever admit. Ironically, at this point, she thought it would break her heart if Booth slept with her simply because he was attracted to her. Oh, she knew that the cared about her but he didn't love her like she loved him and she didn't think she could deal with a physical relationship with him knowing that. _So make him love you._ She could love to but she had no idea how. Hell, she had been trying for more than a year and it hadn't worked so unless she had a brilliant brainstorm or suddenly turned completely irresistible that was out. With a sigh, she decided that this internal debate had accomplished little but to point out how far out of her reach that Booth actually was. Morosely, she doubted that she could seduce him if she tried.

That doubt took a hit when he marched into her office and laid an egg on her desk. She had been briefly puzzled then embarrassed and ashamed that she had let him down so she had let her mouth run away with her. He hadn't said a word when she had intimated he must have told many others about his mother's meat loaf but the look in his eyes said he hadn't told anyone else, only her. Then his eyes had taken on a possessive glow and he'd told her that what was between them was theirs. The words had sent a shiver down her spine and the way he looked at her when he said it made her entire body flush. Frantically telling herself she was seeing what she wanted to see and she couldn't attack him right here in her office, she didn't even remember her response, but it had apparently satisfied him.

She had invited him to attend the dinner honoring her given by the Egyptian government because he was the only person that she wanted to share that kind of accomplishment with. She had even taken him down to see the exhibit early. He had asked about Andrew and she had been so lost in his eyes that she had difficulty remembering who Andrew was. She had told Booth that she invited him here because this was theirs and her breath had caught in her throat at the way he had looked at her as they stepped closer to each other. She was utterly certain that he was about to kiss her when they were interrupted by the rest of her team. She could have screamed in frustration but she didn't. She simply reached up and straightened his tie and he reached out to stroke her hair. Looking into beautiful brown eyes filled with warmth, caring, tenderness and desire, the last of her doubts evaporated. She was a freaking genius; surely she could construct a viable plan to make Seeley Booth fall in love with her, starting with his seduction. Even if it took a really long time for him to learn to love her, that way they would both have a hell of a lot of fun in the process. With a secretive little smile playing around her mouth, she allowed him to escort her back to the party, very much looking forward to him taking her home.


	8. Chapter 8

**Just wanted to post this before I take off for the weekend. I probably won't be back until Tuesday but please have those reviews waiting on me. Musie loves reviews and writes more when she's happy. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth's eyes followed his partner as she made her way across the ballroom to the restrooms, trying to figure out what the hell had gotten into her and what she was up to tonight. Everything had been perfectly normal until she had insisted on taking him to see the mummy exhibit. He had come very, very close to stepping over his own lines and kissing her and had only been pulled back from the brink by the intervention of the squid squad. He had been a tad upset about not getting to kiss her. Okay, he had been royally pissed but had told himself stoically that it was for the best, that it would have been a mistake of massive or portions if he had done so. So he had escorted her back to the party, expecting things to automatically revert to normal between them. He had never been more wrong in his life.

Booth looked down at Brennan as they danced for the first time that night. She looked back with a slow, sexy smile that made his gut clench and his hands tightened on her as he fought the urge to pull her closer. _Things were definitely not normal between them and she was slowly killing him,_ he acknowledged as she snuggled against him. She hadn't left his side since they had returned to the ballroom and he had liked that very much. She had been subtly touching him, her hand on his arm, leaning back against him when he stood behind her, brushing imaginary specks of lint off of his chest and he loved that and hated it at the same time. Just those light touches had him tied up in so many knots that he could barely think and he desperately needed to figure out what was going on before he gave in to his body's urging and pulled her off into a dark corner somewhere to... talk, yeah, that was what he wanted to do with his partner. Talk. He ignored the fact that his hands had been just as busy as hers, stroking her hair, putting an arm around her shoulders while his hand stroked the satiny skin of her shoulders and back left bare by her dress as completely irrelevant to the situation.

If he hadn't known better he would swear she was doing her best to seduce him. Not that it would be hard to do. All she had to do was crook her little finger and he came running, he thought a little disgustedly, but that was a ridiculous notion because she didn't feel that way about him. She had proven that when she had gone to Guatemala while he was still in the hospital following his brain surgery. And she sure as hell wouldn't be dating Hacker if she felt that way about him. _Maybe she was drunk and that was affecting her behavior_. No, he had been with her the whole night and she had only had two glasses of wine. Her alcohol tolerance was much higher than that so that couldn't be it. _Then what was it? Why was she trying to kill him? What the hell was she trying to prove by slowly driving him out of his mind?_

He barely repressed a shudder as she moved closer and her head drifted down to rest on his shoulder as they swayed lazily to the music and suddenly he didn't care why she was doing what she was, he just wanted her to never stop. He shivered as her hands slid beneath his jacket and around his waist to rest low on his back. Then they began to move and her nails scraped lightly just over the curve of his buttocks. He barely held back the moan struggling to escape his throat as his hard on got even harder and she moved closer. She was close enough that her breasts were flattened against him and he could feel her hard nipples stabbing against the muscles of his chest, even through their layers of clothing. _So, it was turning her on to turn him to mush?_ He took some comfort from that. Not much, but a little. Telling himself that it was a very bad idea, he let his hands fall to her hips and pulled her even closer. There was no way he could hold back the groan as her hips came into intimate contact with his erection and no way she could fail to notice what her nearness was doing to his body. He buried his face in her hair before she could see the drool he was sure was coating his chin.

"What are you doing, Bones?" He groaned against her neck. She lifted her head and he slowly raised his and looked into lipid, blue pools awash with desire and just a hint of vulnerability.

"Do I really have to explain it to you, Booth?" She asked and fluttered her lashes at him. Booth's whole body clenched as she twisted and his erection was pushed against the softness of her belly, close enough that the movement of the dance steps provided more friction on his hard on than he needed at the moment. If she kept that up long, he wasn't even going to need a dark corner, he was going to explode right there on the dance floor.

"Maybe you'd better, just so I don't get the wrong idea," he urged, his hands tightening on her hips to hold her still so he could concentrate on her words. She pouted up at him and it took everything he had in him not to lean down and nibble on that protruding lower lip right there in the middle of the dance floor. She pushed herself up on tiptoes and Booth almost whimpered as her breasts dragged across his chest and his erection nestled into the juncture of her thighs.

"I'm trying to seduce you, Booth," she whispered directly into his ear, just before she stuck her tongue in it. His eyes involuntarily closed then popped open as her words penetrated the haze of lust surrounding him. _Dear God in heaven, Bones was trying to seduce him. What the hell was he going to do?_ He didn't even have to think about it. Since he wasn't a moron, he was going to let her.

Brennan very slowly raised her head to look at Booth, her heart beating so hard she was sure he could hear it. She had made moves on men before but they had never been her partner and she had never, ever been thrown into a maelstrom of nerves or been so afraid of rejection. With all of the others her pride might have been involved to a certain extent but never her heart. If they weren't interested, she walked away without a second glance but not Booth. She already knew she would never be able to walk away from him no matter what and she didn't think he would walk away from her. She knew he cared about her and she knew he was attracted to her physically. It might take a little work but she was certain she could eventually seduce him.

Her eyes slowly lifted to meet his. She had already been short of breath, her body taut and throbbing with desire just from being this close to him and feeling what she could do to him but the look in his eyes literally took her breath away. His eyes were almost black, the pupils dilated and she could practically feel the heat radiating from them as they swept over her upturned face. His hand came up to cup her jaw and his forehead dropped down to rest on hers.

"Not that I'm complaining, Bones," he whispered as his thumb traced over her lips, "but do you really think this is the best place to seduce me?" he asked with the sexiest grin she'd ever seen in her life. She was so focused on the fact that he didn't seem to be objecting to her advances and the way his touch made her feel that she really didn't give a damn where they were.

"What?" she whispered absently, her body straining toward him just as he pulled her closer.

"We're on the dance floor at a party in your honor. You need to stop or people are going to notice," he bent his head and whispered into her ear and she shivered, her nipples tightening even more and felt her center becoming even more moist.

Then his words hit her and her heart fell to her feet. His words indicated he would be embarrassed for anyone to see them together as anything other than partners and she couldn't believe how much that hurt. She knew she wasn't like your average woman but no one had ever been ashamed of her before and that possibility hadn't even occurred to her when she had made the decision to seduce Booth. But his words clearly told her there was no future for them, despite their desire for each other. She should have known it wouldn't be that easy. Nothing ever was. Her ardor cooled instantly and she was suddenly ashamed that she had only been focused on her own needs and hadn't taken his into consideration when making her decision. Suddenly, she frantically felt the need to get away from him, to get away from everyone and be alone with her shame and hurt.

"I understand," she said stiffly, her eyes falling to his eyes and tie and staying there, desperately praying for this dance to be over soon. At that instant the music ended and she pulled herself away from him, without meeting his eyes. "Excuse me," she whispered and almost ran away, heading for the ballroom door.

Booth stared after her, stunned. _What the hell had just happened?_ He'd had the woman of his dreams warm and willing in his arms telling him that she was trying to seduce him and less than five minutes later, she couldn't get away from him fast enough? Hell, she wouldn't even look at him. _What in the world had he done to bring on that change? _ His mind went back over every detail in puzzlement and suddenly his eyes widened. She had obviously taken what he'd said the wrong way. He wasn't sure what erroneous conclusion she had drawn but he was sure that he wasn't going to let her just walk away. Not now. Wild horses wouldn't have kept him away from her when he knew that she wanted him, even if it was only physically at the moment. He knew that she cared about him and he could work with that and make her fall in love with him. She was upset and she might not want to seduce him any longer but that was okay because he had been planning the seduction of Dr. Temperence Brennan for years. He was certain he had that covered and he knew exactly where to find her. With a predatory smile, he started across the ballroom, knowing that his entire life was about to change.

He found her in her office just as he had known he would. She hadn't even bothered to turn on the lights and he stood in the doorway with his hands in his pockets, leaning against the doorjamb for several seconds and just drank in the beautiful woman standing before him. Then he took in the dejected slope of her shoulders and how she had her arms wrapped around her waist defensively and wanted to kick his own ass for hurting her, however inadvertently. Straightening his spine, he silently walked up behind her as she stood staring blankly at the scientific journals on her bookshelf, her mind obviously a million miles away. His body was on fire to pull her against him and pick up from where they had left off on the dance floor but that would have to wait. He knew that wasn't what she needed from him right now.

"Are you okay, Bones?" he asked quietly, stepping in closely behind her and placing his hands on her shoulders, trying to ignore the feeling of all that soft, bare skin against his fingertips and the way his body tightened in response. She stiffened and started to pull away and his hands tightened, holding her in place.

"I'm fine, Booth," she finally said quietly. His heart ached and his eyes closed at the little girl hurt in her voice. He instinctively stepped closer and his hands began to rub up and down her arms.

Brennan was hurt, upset, ashamed, embarrassed and barely holding back tears. She couldn't believe how badly she had misread the situation. She was desperately trying to convince herself that she hadn't just made the biggest mistake of her life and thrown away everything she had with Booth just because she couldn't control her libido. She had instinctively sought out a place of safety to lick her wounds but she should have known he would follow and wouldn't have any trouble locating her. Booth knew her even better than she knew herself. Then he touched her and she wanted to turn and throw herself into his arms so she tried to tear herself away from the touch of his hard, warm hands on her bare flesh and walk away. But she was pathetically weak where he was concerned and her body craved even this innocent touch so she couldn't make herself pull away. It took every bit of her willpower to hold herself stiff and not lean back against him.

"I'm sorry I embarrassed you, Booth," she whispered and Booth blinked in surprise. His mind drifted back over what he had said to her and he winced as he suddenly understood what she had thought. He had been a lot of things on that dance floor but embarrassed wasn't one of them. Hot, hard and ready to do something that might embarrass them both later definitely but he had not been even remotely embarrassed by what she was doing, he had only wanted more. He just had to make her see that. With a wicked grin that she would have wondered at if she had seen it, he stepped even closer and his hands drifted down to rest on her hips.

"Bones, you couldn't embarrass me if you tried," he assured her. She snorted.

"I do embarrass you in social situations, Booth. I've been practicing those as well as my humor and my colloquialisms but, apparently, I haven't reached the optimal level of understanding of what is acceptable in specific situations so I overstepped the boundaries." Booth winced at the self directed frustration he could hear in her voice.

"Okay, maybe you have embarrassed me a time or two," he admitted. She stiffened and tried to pull away but his arm slid around her waist, his hand splayed across her abdomen and she instantly stilled with a gasp. "But only when we first became partners," he assured her hurriedly, his hand slowly stroking up and down her abdomen, not missing how her body quivered under his touch. "Then I got to know you and that was just a part of who you are. You didn't embarrass me tonight, Bones," he finished softly.

"Yes, I did, Booth. You said so," she insisted stubbornly. Booth knew he hadn't said any such thing but words alone weren't going to convince her and suddenly he didn't feel much like talking anyway. He had her alone in a quiet, private place just as he had wished for earlier and having his hands on her had him so turned on he was almost trembling with need. His body took control and he didn't even try to stop it. The hand on her abdomen splayed even wider and moved lower and the one on her hip tightened as her jerked her back against him. His hips tilted and he unabashedly rubbed his raging arousal against her bottom, not even bothering to try and hold back the groan the contact elicited.

"Does that feel like I was embarrassed to you, Bones?" he growled, his open mouth against the side of her throat.

Brennan fought to hold back whimpers and hold onto her thoughts as Booth's mouth instinctively found the spot on her neck that made her wild and stayed there. She had already been hot and wet from teasing him on the dance floor but to feel his hands and mouth on her body, to feel how much he was turned on by her lit a fire in her lower abdomen that was so hot it almost scared her. Her whole body ached for him to strip her naked right here in her office and put those talented hands and mouth all over her yearning body.

"Booth, what are you doing?" she gasped, not even aware that her hips were rocking back against the thrust of his.

"I'm seducing you, Bones," he answered immediately and she shuddered at the open sensuality in his voice. No matter how much she wanted to just close her eyes and enjoy what he was doing to her body she couldn't banish the thought that he wasn't seeing her at all but that other woman from his dreams. It hadn't seemed like that much of an issue when she was in control but now it made her a little queasy to think that he was thinking of someone else while making love with her.

"I'm not her, Booth," she said a little desperately as his hand moved from her hip and feathered across the underside of her breast, her nipple already hard and aching for his touch.

"Not who?" Booth's body was so consumed by desire for the woman in his arms that he could barely understand words but he caught the hint of desperation in her voice and tried to concentrate.

"The woman you dreamed about, Booth. I'm not her. I'm just me." Her voice clearly said she didn't think that was enough and Booth stilled instantly as understanding washed over him. His forehead dropped to her shoulder and he took several deep breaths trying to get himself under control. This was important and he couldn't mess it up. Turning her in his arms, he met beautiful blue eyes clouded with desire, fear and confusion and felt a wave of tenderness for this woman wash over him and he was no longer afraid of telling her how he felt. He instinctively knew there would never be a more perfect time.

"I know who you are, Bones," he assured her softly, cupping her jaw tenderly in his big hand. "You're my partner," his lips brushed lightly over hers, "and my best friend." He knew if he kissed her again he wouldn't be doing any more talking and this needed to be said for both of them so he dropped his forehead to rest against hers, both hands now cupping her face and held her eyes as he continued. "You're the person I tell my deepest, darkest secrets to. The person I know who will always listen and never judge me. You're the person who takes away my pain and sadness just by being there. You, Temperence Brennan, are the woman of my dreams." Brennan's eyes had been growing wider the whole time he had been speaking and he couldn't help but see the hope growing there.

"I don't understand," she almost stuttered. She did but she needed to hear him say it.

"You were the woman in my dream, Bones. You've been the woman of my dreams for a hell of a long time now," he whispered as his head bent. "I love you, Bones," he whispered against her mouth. Her mouth opened on a gasp and he didn't hesitate to take advantage of it, deepening the kiss as his tongue slowly stroked into her mouth and touched the tip of hers.

With a little whimpering sound in the back of her throat that made Booth's entire body go rigid, Brennan threw her arms around his neck and pulled him closer as her tongue swirled around his. She had never been happier or more turned on in her life. Booth loved her and that knowledge filled her with a joy that she had never thought to experience during her lifetime. It also made her body even more eager to experience making love for the first time ever. Booth had promised that the experience would negate the laws of physics and she trusted him implicitly. She also knew that he was the only man she would ever test that theory with again and she needed him to know it, too.

"I love you, Seeley Booth," she gasped pulling away from his lips just far enough to get the words out, Booth's lips following and sought to restore contact. She thought he hadn't heard her for a second and was opening her mouth to repeat it when he stilled and his eyes opened to look directly into hers. There were so many emotions swirling in those black depths that she couldn't even begin to name them all but she did see love and a quiet joy that touched her heart. A smile with the brilliance of the sun behind it broke across his face and she knew that he had heard her.

"Yeah?" He asked softly, his eyes eagerly searching her face, almost afraid to let himself believe that she had actually said she loved him.

"Yeah," she returned just as softly, allowing every emotion she felt to show openly, not trying to hide anything from this man. He knew from that action alone that she loved him. Brennan never dropped all of her defenses for anyone, even him. He had been patiently waiting for her to do just that for years and now that she had he couldn't believe how happy it made him that she trusted him enough to allow herself to love him. He leaned down and kissed her so tenderly that she wanted to cry yet so possessively that she felt like she was going to burst into flames. She was more than a little surprised when he finally lifted his head, slipped an arm around her shoulders and turned her toward the door.

"Where are we going?" She asked in confusion, her senses still in overdrive as she fought the urge to drag him over to the couch.

"I'm taking you home," he murmured, pulling her close, grinning a little at her obvious disappointment that he wasn't touching her any longer. She wouldn't be disappointed for long but if he didn't get her out of here now, their first time was going to be on her desk. If he kissed her again, he doubted they would even make it to the sofa and he didn't want her to remember her first experience of truly making love like that. "We have a lot to talk about."

Brennan sighed in disappointment. Knowing how much Booth valued talking things over, it could very well be days before he took her to bed. Booth looked at her face and had no difficult deciphering her thoughts but he did have some difficulty keeping a straight face. _Boy, was she in for a surprise when they got to her apartment._ Despite her slightly glum thoughts, the knowledge that Booth loved her filled her with a warm glow and a happy, satisfied smile played around Brennan's lips. Looking at her, Booth was happier than he had ever known it was possible to be and he vowed to do whatever it took to make this woman happy and keep her as his forever.


	9. Chapter 9

Sorry to be behind in posting, guys. This chapter kind of got away from me so I broke it down into two chapters. I think you probably will be able to find it in your hearts to forgive me. LOL. Please don't forget to review. Thanks, T.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

The trip to her apartment took less than ten minutes on the almost deserted DC streets but it seemed to Booth as if they would never get there. Brennan was taking full advantage of the fact that his hands weren't free to stop her to drive him completely insane during the trip. As soon as they had pulled out of the parking lot, her slender hand had reached over and began to smooth up and down his inner thigh in long, sensuous strokes and he had liked it too much to object. Less than ten blocks from the Jeffersonian, he had seriously considered pulling into a deserted parking lot when her fingers danced lightly over his prominent erection, then settled in for long, firm strokes that quickly had him hurtling toward the edge even through his pants.

"Stop that," he admonished, catching her hand and bringing it to his lips to press a wet, open mouthed kissed against the palm. He held on to her hand out of sheer self-preservation but that didn't stop the torture she subjected him to.

"Why?" she breathed into his ear as her teeth nibbled at his earlobe and she plastered herself against him, his arm cushioned between her breasts.

"Because I, for one, would like to make it to your apartment in one piece. I have big plans for you tonight, Bones," he breathed huskily. She raised her head far enough for him to see that her eyes had gone a dark, smoky blue.

"Really?" She returned giving him a sexy smile that raised his temperature and heart rate at the same time.

"Yeah, really," he assured her after clearing his throat a couple of times.

"Good, because I have some very, very interesting plans for you as well, Seeley Booth." Booth swallowed hard at the look in her eyes and the tone of her voice. They were both pure, sensual sin with a side of temptation mixed in. Her lips moved to his neck and her tongue darted out to draw patterns there until she found a spot that made him groan aloud. She went to work on that spot with a vengeance, her mouth, tongue and teeth doing things to his neck that he hadn't known were possible. They finally arrived at her apartment with him having no real memory of the last five minutes of the drive and he could only be grateful that they had made it at all considering how stirred up his partner had him. Telling himself that he wouldn't touch her until they were ensconced inside her apartment, he helped her out of the SUV and, maintaining a firm grip on her wandering hand, led her to the elevator.

The resolve not to touch her lasted until the elevator doors closed behind them. He was hotter and harder than he could ever remember being in his life, his whole body seeming to vibrate with the need this woman brought to life and he couldn't wait another second to have another taste of her. Using the hand he held captive to jerk her against him, he absorbed her gasp of surprise and delight into his mouth as his lips closed over hers. He had meant to keep it light but there was nothing light or tentative about this kiss. It was hard and deep, filled with unadulterated intent, his lips and tongue telling her in no uncertain terms what he wanted to be doing to her body, what he most definitely would be doing to her body as soon as humanly possible. His hands fell to her hips and he dragged her even closer, his body instinctively moving against hers as she moaned into his mouth and clung to him, returning the kiss with passionate abandon. He had no idea how long they stood there wrapped around each other but it wasn't nearly long enough to suit him.

A loudly clearing throat brought him back to reality enough to realize where they were and the inappropriateness of the situation gave him the strength to pull away from her. She made a whimpering sound of protest deep in her throat and confused, smoky blue eyes fluttered open to meet his. He smiled at her gently and stroked her cheek with his thumb. "We're in the elevator at your apartment," he whispered. Her eyes widened and she looked around, her eyes falling on her elderly neighbor, Mrs. Shuman, who was looking on in very apparent amusement. Brennan couldn't bring herself to care that the older woman had seen her and Booth practically devouring each other in the elevator. With a stilted smile at her neighbor, Brennan grabbed Booth's hand and dragged him toward her apartment, ignoring the open laughter coming from behind them. Booth winked at the elderly woman as they passed her and let Brennan lead the way. He would follow her anywhere and they both knew it.

Brennan pulled the key to her apartment out of her purse and suddenly found her hands shaking so hard that she couldn't make her key fit into the lock of her apartment door and she had no idea why. Her conscience snorted at that and told her not to lie to herself. Okay, she did know why. She was hot and horny but that was only a small portion of it, mostly she was scared. Terrified, really, of the step she was about to take with Booth, knowing that this would change everything between them. The terror of anything changing their relationship in a negative way had been lurking there for a very long time, it was one of the big reasons that she hadn't made a move on him before but now that things were about to irrevocably change between them, she couldn't deny it any longer.

She knew she loved Booth with all of her heart and she didn't doubt his words of love for even a second but the lost, lonely, little girl inside her cried out for her not to do this, not to take a chance on messing things up and removing the one constant in her life that she could always count on. The little girl and the woman both loved him too much to survive that. But the woman loved him too much to turn away from the opportunity to build a life with him, a life that they both wanted. The little girl reminded her that things just didn't work out for her like that, she was one of those people that simply didn't get to be happy and she would undoubtedly do something that would drive Booth away forever then they would be more alone than ever before.

Booth, noting the tremor in Brennan's hand, reached down and took the key from her, unlocking the door and urging her inside. Turning to her, he could see that something was very wrong, all the passionate desire that had been on her face only minutes earlier had been replaced by fear and apprehension. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asked softly, stepping closer and cupping her face in his hands, tilting it up until he could see the confusion swirling in her eyes. She bit her lip, not wanting to spoil this special time between them but she found she couldn't lie to him, either.

"I'm scared, Booth," she whispered.

"Of us?" he queried, holding her gaze, not at all surprised by her reaction. Considering her background, he would have been surprised if she wasn't scared. She nodded, placing her hands over his and pressing them closer to her face. "Me, too," he admitted with a gentle smile, his forehead drifting down to rest on hers. Her eyes widened at his admission. She had to admit that she hadn't even considered that Booth might be scared, too, but it made sense. He had to share her concerns over messing up their partnership and just knowing that helped to ease her worry. "But I love you too much to let that fear keep us apart any longer, Bones," he told her solemnly. "We will make this work," he assured her, then he gave her the one thing she needed to hear the most. "I will never leave you," he vowed softly, brushing a gentle kiss across her lips.

It all came down to trust, Brennan realized. _Did she trust herself enough to be sure that she would never drive Booth away?_ Sadly, no, given her track record with relationships, she really didn't. But she did trust Booth implicitly. She trusted him with her life every single day and she knew that he would never, ever deliberately hurt her. And he was going in to this relationship armed with the knowledge of all her faults, knowing her as well as it was possible to know another person and with the same need for them to always be together that she felt. As difficult as giving up control was for her, she would simply have to trust that he would never let her drive him away and that he would never willingly leave her. _Yes, she had enough trust in Booth to let him lead her in this relationship business and know that they would make it work. She could trust Seeley Booth with her heart._

"Okay," she murmured with a blinding smile and Booth let out a silent sigh of relief that a potential disaster had been so easily averted. He smiled against her mouth then his lips opened over hers and they both forgot what they had been talking about as their passion for each other exploded. Within seconds, Brennan found herself pressed between the hard, cold wood of the front door and the hard, warm muscles of Booth's chest, his lips pushing hers apart and his tongue sliding into her mouth to map every crevice and mark them as his territory. Moaning, Brennan opened her mouth and allowed him to do as he wished, unbelievably turned on by the dominance he was exerting.

Booth also found it more than a little arousing that the woman to whom control was almost a religion openly turned that control over to him. He in no way wanted to physically dominate his partner but he couldn't deny a few fantasies of him being in charge sexually over the years. Some of them even included the front door of her apartment but if that was what he had wanted their first time to be like they would still be in her office. Without breaking contact with her lips, he swung her up into his arms and carried her to the bedroom, intent on showing her that what they did together had no real relation to sex. It would be all about making love.


	10. Chapter 10

**I think this is really the chapter that everyone has been waiting for. I hope that no one is disappointed but please let me know either way. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: not mine.**

Brennan's head was spinning from Booth's kisses as he lowered her feet to the floor at the side of her bed, his hands gently cupping her face and tilting it further back so his mouth could invade hers more thoroughly. Her breath stuttered out of her throat as his teeth caught at her lower lip and his hands quickly found the zipper on the back of her dress, smoothly lowering it and almost reverently sliding the straps of the dress down her arms to bare her breasts to his gaze for the first time. He gazed at her for long moments then raised his eyes to meet hers and she felt completely overwhelmed by the emotions and physical responses generated by the heat in his eyes. Every muscle in her body quivered, her center dampened to an embarrassing degree, the throbbing there had become almost painful and her heart actually fluttered in her chest. She almost felt like this was her first time and in a way, she guessed it was, her first time making love, not just having sex. Oh, she knew the mechanics but she had never experienced anything close to what she was feeling with Booth before and it scared her a little.

Booth forced himself to hold back and not get as aggressive with Brennan as he wanted to. He wanted this first time to be tender and perfect enough to show her that he had been telling her the truth about making love vs. sex. Plus, she was already a little afraid of their relationship, she sure as hell didn't need him releasing all of his pent up needs on top of that. He wasn't about to do anything that might send her running from him, certainly not now that he knew she loved him and wanted to make a life with him. But that resolve was sorely tested when he lowered the bodice of her dress and looked at her perfect breasts for the first time. They were lush and round and heavy, topped with hard pink nipples that made his mouth water with the need to taste them. Reaching out, he gently ran his forefinger over a puckered nipple, smiling when she gasped and arched toward his hand. Forcing his eyes upward, he met her gaze.

"God, Baby, you are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life," he whispered in awe, his hand now cupping one heavy breast. He could see the confusion and a trace of fear in her eyes and knew that this experience was just as new and overpowering for her as it was for him. But she was much less emotionally equipped to handle it than he was and he didn't want her to be scared of anything the first time they made love. He didn't doubt that she loved him but he wanted her to be very, very sure that she was ready before they took this step because once he was ensconced in her bed, he had no intention of leaving it, ever. His forehead dropped down to rest on hers and his arms locked around her back as he tried to gather what little control he had left to make the offer he knew he had to make. "We don't have to do this now, Baby," he offered almost choking on the words, his body screaming in protest. "We can take this slow if that's what you need." He thought that pulling away from her right now would literally kill him but if that was what she needed, he would do it.

Brennan blinked in surprise. _He thought she wanted to stop? When she was about to burst into flames from what really amounted to only a little heavy petting?_ _God, no, she didn't want to stop._ Stopping now would probably kill her but it made her heart melt in her chest that he was willing to push his own desires aside and forego his own pleasure to give her time if that was what she needed. She really didn't deserve the special man in her arms but she was going to spend the rest of her life trying to change that and making sure that she didn't take advantage of his caring, giving nature, even unintentionally. Booth waited with bathed breath for Brennan's response, his heart sinking when her gaze dropped from his to focus on his chest. Seconds later, she raised her gaze to capture his once more and his knees almost gave way in relief. The confusion and fear he had seen there earlier were completely overshadowed by blazing heat and a need that matched his own.

"I've never felt like this before, Booth, and it scared me a little, but I don't want to stop," she assured him, her hands resting on his chest.

"I've never felt like this before, either, Bones," he countered.

"Really?" She was surprised and it showed.

"Really," his hand smoothed the hair back from her face. "I've never felt the way I feel about you for anyone else so it makes sense that making love would be different with you, too." He saw her scientific mind engage and tried not to grin as her forehead scrunched up in a way that he had always found adorable. He kissed the furl between her brows instead.

"I concur," she nodded seconds later.

"Vehemently?" he teased

"Is there any other way to concur?" she asked, completely serious and he burst out laughing and hugged her tightly, amazed that she could take him from being wound up so tightly he was ready to snap to laughing in such a short time. He knew his life with this woman wouldn't be easy but it would never be boring either.

"Now, I would very much like to get back to what we were doing," she purred, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling his head down to nip at his lips. And just like that, they were thrown back into a maelstrom of desire and need but it was even more intense than ever before, the jolts of electricity generated by them touching each other had turned to lightning bolts. Within a very few minutes, they were both just as aroused as they had been before and Booth was gritting his teeth to keep from throwing her down on the bed.

Telling himself to take it slow and easy, Booth bent back to her eagerly waiting lips, his mouth hard and hungry. Booth's hunger fed Brennan's and she opened her mouth wider to his probing tongue with a groan, letting go of everything except the feelings this man roused in her. These she embraced with open arms, the tingling of her skin everywhere he touched her, the way her muscles trembled with the desire flooding her body, the fire in her lower body that was burning so hot that it literally took her breath away.

Her hands moved to the buttons on his shirt, but they were trembling so badly that she had trouble slipping the buttons through the seemingly too small holes. Without a second thought, she grasped the sides of the shirt and jerked hard, sending buttons flying and suddenly her hands were touching hard, warm flesh. With a growl of approval, Booth shrugged out of his shirt, glad that his jacket and tie had been removed in the car, and Brennan had access to acres of hard muscles covered with smooth skin, hers to do with as she pleased. And she pleased to do a lot because she had lost count of the number of times she had dreamed of being with him like this, she had a lot of pent up fantasies to fulfill.

With a soft sigh of satisfaction, she gave herself over to the tactile pleasure of her fingers softly tracing the outline of the delineated muscles of his chest. Her fingertips ghosted over each and every one until they found his nipples which were already hard little nubs before she even touched them. Her fingers firmed and teasingly rubbed over those pebbled peaks before her nails lightly scraped over them. Booth groaned and jerked her against him, needing to feel her bare breasts rubbing against his equally bare chest. His response kicked her own arousal up a couple of notches and she arched her back, pressing her breasts even more firmly against him.

Those fingers brushing his warm flesh sent darts of fire shooting straight to his erection but it just wasn't enough for Booth as his mouth grew rougher and more demanding. Her hands were in the way and he needed to feel her, all of her, against him right now. Actually, he wanted her naked and spread out beneath him immediately but he was determined to make this something she would never forget so that was out for the moment. With impatient hands, he pushed her dress over her hips and grabbed her wrists, pulling them behind her back and causing her to arch against him sharply with a gasp of surprise, her breasts flattening against his chest. He knew he was losing his grip on his control but he couldn't seem to stop himself as he reluctantly stopped kissing her and raised his head to look directly into her eyes to make sure that the fear wasn't back in her eyes. But fear was nowhere to be found in her eyes, they were too full of love, lust and breathless excitement for it to have any room to take hold. Booth actually felt his last tether of control snap as he realized that she liked him like this, hard, hungry, aggressive and slightly out of control. And he always tried to give his partner exactly what she wanted.

"You have no idea what you do to me, Bones," he growled, his hips rocking against hers.

"Show me," she invited with a sultry laugh, heat flaring in her eyes. Holding her eyes with his, he released her wrists and his hands came to rest on her waist then slowly slid up her sides until they were cupping the outsides of her breasts. His big hands spread out to encompass as much of her as possible and his thumbs firmly rubbed over her erect nipples. She moaned and her eyelids fluttered shut as she arched her back to get closer to his touch. Her hands came up to cup his face and she leaned her upper body backward so far that only his hands held her upright, knowing he would never let her fall. With this one act she showed her absolute faith in him and she freely offered herself to this man body and soul, completely open to him as she had never been with another. Her eyelids slowly opened to show dark, blue pools glazed with desire. "Show me," she repeated, urging his head down with eager hands.

Booth understood instantly and he was almost brought to his knees by the realization that she was offering him everything that she was. She was telling him not just that she loved him but that she belonged to him and he thought his heart just might explode with the wave of joy and love that lodged there and expanded it until it filled his entire chest. "I love you," he said looking directly into her eyes then his head bent and the entire focus of his being became giving the woman in his arms as much pleasure as humanly possible.

Brennan sighed softly in pleasure as Booth's warm mouth opened over her collarbone, his tongue darting out to flick over her skin and send shivers racing down her spine. His big hands slid around and spread out on her back to hold her more securely as his open mouth slowly moved downward. Her hands moved caressingly across his chest as he kissed and licked every inch of her left breast then her right without ever making contact with her aching nipple. Biting down on her lower lip to hold back pleas for him to give her what she wanted, her hands burrowed into his hair and she tried to force his mouth to her nipple. He laughed softly, his warm breath washing over her hardened nipples and making her shudder.

"Is this what you want?" His voice was a husky growl, just as his lips closed around a pebbled nipple and her moan of pleasure told him that that was, indeed, exactly what she wanted. Booth knew he had been teasing her and the reason was twofold. First of all, he wanted her wild and completely out of control, willing to do anything to satisfy the raging desire he aroused in her. Then she would have at least a little understanding of how she made him feel. Secondly, he simply couldn't go any faster. When he touched her, his hands and lips lingered to thoroughly explore, refusing to move on until they had touched and kissed every glorious inch of whatever part of her gorgeous body they could reach.

His lips closed around her nipple, sucking it deeply into his mouth and she whimpered deep in her throat, arching her back sharply and pushing her breast more firmly against his mouth, one hand moving to one of his nipples and scraping over it repeatedly, the other moving to his belt buckle and trying to undo it one handed. Her response completely shattered his control, throwing his strategy by the wayside and leaving him a hard, hungry man with the woman he loved and had wanted to take to bed for the last five years warm and willing in his arms.

With an almost feral growl, Booth shifted Brennan up a little straighter and his mouth opened more fully over the tip of her breast, catching the nipple with his tongue and rolling it against the roof of his mouth. At the same time, his hand slipped underneath the band of her flimsy panties and curved over her firm rounded buttocks, jerking her against him. With a whimper, her hips pushed forward, stroking up and down his long, hard length and Booth groaned and pulled her even closer.

Finally figuring out that she needed both hands to undo it, Brennan's hands worked frantically at Booth's belt buckle as his mouth moved to her other breast and gave it the same treatment. Unbridled passion coursed through her body, burning a trail from the lips rhythmically tugging on her nipple straight down to settle into a scorching fire between her legs. A fire that was stoked higher and hotter when Booth's hand moved from her ass to slide between her legs and he found her very hot and very, very wet. His fingers feathered over her clit and moved lower to stroke her moist folds. She moaned, a low, sensual purr of a sound that drove him wild with desire and possessiveness rushed through him with the force of a volcanic eruption. This was his woman, and everything male in him demanded she be clear on that fact. Shuddering against her, Booth raised his head and took her mouth in a kiss unlike any Brennan had ever received. He ravaged her mouth, plundering, stroking his tongue against hers, claiming possession and showing her in no uncertain terms that she belonged to him. That kiss made her go weak in the knees and lose the ability to form coherent thought.

Booth knew that he was completely out of control and he didn't give a damn. After dreaming about it for so long, holding Brennan like this, touching her like this and knowing where it was leading was making him crazy. His body was tied up in painful knots of need, lust and desire and he couldn't get enough of her, couldn't get close enough to even start to relieve the ache he had been carrying around for what seemed like forever. And those sweet little noises that she was making in the back of her throat were about to send him over the edge. He needed to be inside her soon or he was going to lose his mind. Without breaking contact with her lips, he lowered her to the bed and followed her down, settling firmly into the v of her open thighs.

Brennan felt the softness of her bed at her back but it only registered faintly. Her whole attention was focused on Booth and on the way he was making her feel. He was making her crazy, his hands running over her body and playing it like a finely tuned instrument until it was his to command, no longer under her control and despite her penchant for always being in control, she was loving every minute of it. _And, God, the way he was kissing her, as if he wanted to devour her was making her so hot she was surprised steam wasn't rising from her skin._ Vaguely realizing that both of her hands were gripping Booth's belt buckle, Brennan finally managed to get it undone as her tongue dueled with his. Getting the zipper down was a little problematic because there wasn't much room to maneuver with his hard on pushing against it but she finally managed to slide one hand down his pants behind the zipper and use the other to unzip him.

Booth's breath hissed out as he felt Brennan's hand slide down the front of his pants and brush firmly against his throbbing erection then lost his breath entirely when the zipper parted and her hand immediately tunneled under his boxers to grasp his cock. Moaning into her open mouth, he couldn't stop the thrust of his hips as her fingers tightened around him and nothing had ever felt that good before. His hand slid back into her almost not there panties to find her even hotter and wetter than before. Without hesitation, he slid two fingers inside her and they both shuddered. Her hips arched completely off the bed and her fingers tightened around him even more, her strokes on his sensitive flesh becoming harder and faster. He knew if he didn't stop her now, he wasn't going to stop her at all and he damn sure wasn't going to come before he even got inside her their first time.

Leveraging himself slightly up on his knees, he removed temptation from her grasp despite her whimper of protest, his fingers never faltering in their rhythmic movement in and out of her slick channel. Her hips pushed up to meet his fingers, her body drawing tauter and tauter. She lay sprawled before him with her soft, silky hair spread over the pillow, her gorgeous, pink body covered only by a thin strip of satin and lace and glistening with sweat and had never seen a more beautiful sight in his life.

"Booth, I need you inside of me now," she moaned, aching for his possession from the top of her head to the tips of her toes.

"Bones, I need to be inside of you now," he groaned, equally needy. They spoke simultaneously then paused to look into each other's eyes as the words sank in. Neither had ever been this attuned to another person, lover or not, especially this early into a physical relationship.

"Please, Booth," Brennan panted, her hips arching upward to meet his still moving fingers as her eyes ran over his magnificent physique like a physical caress. She also wanted to take the time to touch, taste and explore his delightfully hard body but was so close to the edge that she couldn't pull back now. There were many, many things that she wanted to do to Seeley Booth and she would make it a point to get to all of them but right now, she needed Booth to fill all those empty, aching places in her heart, body and soul and show her what truly making love was all about.

Booth was standing at the foot of the bed and had his pants and underwear removed before the sound of her voice died away. Leaning down, he slipped a finger under the thin straps on both sides of her panties, gently tugged them down her long, slender legs and tossed them aside, his eyes flowing over her now nude body with pure, male appreciation and absolute possession. Looking at her, he wanted to go slow, wanted to linger, explore and enjoy every inch of that delectable body but he had never felt need the likes of which was clawing through his gut right now and he just couldn't slow down.

Coming back down on the bed on all fours, he couldn't resist lowering his head and swirling his tongue in and around her belly button, not missing the way her muscles quivered under the caress. She shivered and moaned as he kissed and licked his way up her flat abdomen to her generous breasts. Stopping there, his tongue darted out and rasped over one nipple. She arched toward him and both hands buried themselves in his hair, urging him closer. Long minutes later, he slowly kissed his way up her chest and neck. By the time he made it to her mouth, she was moaning and writhing beneath him as his erection came to rest in the open v of her thighs. His breath escaped in a hiss now that clothing no longer separated their bare skin, the wet heat of core invitingly hot against his hardness.

Brennan wasn't sure if Booth was doing it on purpose or not but she was beginning to think he was trying to kill her. It certainly felt that way. Her heart seemed to be beating a stuttering stop and start rhythm in her chest and she could barely catch her breath not to mention her temperature had to be at least 50 ° above normal for it to feel like her blood was actually bubbling inside her veins. And her partner was at the root of all those little maladies, playing her body and pushing her further and further over the edge of control and into pure, blind need. She was even beginning to wonder if she was going to survive the actual sex part but found that she was so hot and horny she didn't much care if she survived at this point, she just wanted to get on with it. By the time Booth loomed over her, she was completely mindless with pure animal lust and need and nothing mattered but satisfying that need. Raising her head, her mouth fastened around one of his small round nipples and she sucked hard. Her legs wrapped around his upper thighs and she lifted herself against him, his cock gliding along her moist folds.

_God, she was definitely trying to kill him_, Booth thought as her moisture coated his hard on and he was almost singed by the heat from her center, _but what a way to go_. He moaned as her lips released his nipple and moved upwards, her hands going to his ass and her nails digging in, urging him forward, just as she bit down on his muscular shoulder. He shivered and his cock twitched as he was bombarded with all these new sensations on top of the raging arousal he already had and he'd had enough. No, actually, he hadn't had nearly enough yet but he was about to. Tangling a hand in her hair, he gently pulled Brennan's head back from where she was nibbling on his neck, his breath catching when he saw her eyes. They were wild and unfocused, glazed with need, the pupils dilated. She was just as needy as he was and he was glad because he didn't think he could wait another second to make her his.

His head dropped until his forehead rested against hers, their eyes meeting. Smiling tenderly at her, he reached down and guided himself to her entrance. "I love you, Bones," he said, entering her in one smooth thrust, his eyes slamming shut at the intensely pleasurable sensation of his aching flesh being surrounded and tightly squeezed by all that searing heat and moisture. They moaned in unison at the invasion and his hands clenched into fists beside her head, his teeth gritting as he desperately fought to hang onto some semblance of control when the desire to thrust into her hard and fast was almost overwhelming. With a deep groan reverberating from his chest, Booth began to move.

"I love you too, Booth," Brennan moaned into his mouth as her arms locked around his neck and the words and wanton sound of her voice hit him like an aphrodisiac, whittling away at his control. Legs still around his upper thighs, Brennan arched toward him, her body begging him to do more, to slide deeper into her core. "Harder, Booth," she whimpered biting the flesh between his neck and shoulder, her hands all over him. In his hair, scraping down his chest, running over his back and buttocks.

Without the slightest hesitation, Booth thrust deep, looking down at the woman beneath him. The woman he desired above all others and the one woman he had almost lost hope of ever having like this. With each hard grinding of their hips, he felt immense, immeasurable pleasurable move from his cock and radiate up his spine. The long, low moans and soft words of praise falling from her lips told him that she was receiving a tremendous amount of gratification. But no matter how much she willingly gave, he couldn't get enough of her. Again and again he drove deep into the wet heat of her depths, her hips lifting to meet him stroke for stroke. He claimed her mouth with hungry lips and tongue, tasting her, teasing her. He could only think of the need to be deeply inside her over and over again and pray that would be sufficient to sate the explosion building inside him. Otherwise, it was sure to kill him.

Brennan clung to Booth with something just shy of desperation, molding her body to his, skin to skin. Shudders ran through her tautly arched, aching body and she was mindless to anything but appeasing the need that held her in thrall. Wildly, she bucked and rocked against him, trying to get closer, trying to become one with him. With each deep thrust, she became a little more demanding and his control slipped a little more. Then they were kissing wildly, moving together in a frenzied glide of damp skin against damp skin. Her teeth nipped at his chest, his shoulder, his chin, his lip and Booth finally snapped.

Rising up on his hands, Booth caught both of her legs and pulled them toward her chest, holding them there with his arms behind her knees. This new position gave him complete control and allowed an even deeper penetration. At the first plunge, Brennan gave a muffled scream, bucking wildly against him, her head tossing from side to side on the pillow. "Yes," she moaned, everything about her, voice, body and face, telling Booth she was poised on the edge and he was glad because he didn't think he could hold out very much longer. Pumping harder and faster, Booth felt the spasms of her orgasm grip him, stroking his erection with tight little squeezes and demanding his release. Then she called out his name in a sultry voice throbbing with satisfaction and that sent him hurtling after her. Losing his rhythm entirely, his hips jerked against hers several more times then he buried himself as deeply inside her as he could get and spilled himself inside her, following her into an ecstasy just short of oblivion.

Shaking and panting for breath, Booth collapsed, managing to roll to Brennan's side to keep from crushing her then onto his back. Brennan immediately curled against him and laid her head on his sweaty chest, just as shaky and out of breath as he was. Neither had any idea how much time had passed before they were even capable of speech.

"Wow," she said softly, her hand running over his smooth chest.

"I concur," Booth knew he had a goofy smile on his face but he didn't give a damn, his wildest dreams had all come true tonight and he thought he might be smiling about that for the rest of his life. He slipped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer.

"Vehemently?" Brennan asked with a very un Brennan like giggle.

"Of course," he agreed solemnly, his heart warmed by the absolute joy and contentment shining out of those big, blue eyes that he would never get tired of staring into. _Those big blue eyes that were completely sated and very, very sleepy_, Booth noted as Brennan tried to stifle a yawn. Tipping her chin up, he leaned down and gave her a bone meltingly possessive kiss which she eagerly returned, then pulled the covers up over them and urged her head back down on his shoulder. "Go to sleep, baby," he urged with a kiss on the top of her head.

"I thought you wanted to talk," she answered around another yawn. Booth did think that they had a several things they needed to discuss but not tonight. Some of the issues they had to discuss could be considered sensitive in nature and he sure as hell didn't want anything negative contaminating the memory of that unbelievable lovemaking. Talking could wait until tomorrow. Hell, today was only Friday and they had all weekend, he was sure they would get some talking done during those two days, but only about the really important stuff. They had the rest of their lives to work out the minor details and he had no intention of spending their first weekend together as a couple gabbing the whole time. In fact, he had no plans to let Brennan any farther from the bed than the bathroom for the next two days.

"Go to sleep, baby. We'll talk tomorrow," Booth fought back a yawn of his own as Brennan snuggled even closer.

"I love you, Booth," she whispered, her eyes already almost closed.

"I love you, too, Bones," he wanted to jump for joy and shout it to the world every time she said those words but he curbed his enthusiasm because she was almost asleep already, so he settled for a squeeze of her shoulders and a soft brush of her lips. He started out making a mental list of the issues that absolutely needed to discuss before returning to work on Monday but shortly, he drifted off to sleep while trying to catalog his favorite Brennan fantasies from over the years and determine which ones she might be willing to reenact over the weekend, still with a big smile on his face.


	11. Chapter 11

Hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Please remember to review one way or the other. Thanks, T.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Booth slowly wakened, instantly knowing where he was and who he was holding so closely in his arms. Even to himself, it was impossible to describe exactly how he felt to be here with his partner like this except to say that he felt like he had, at long last, found his place in the world, like he had come home and he never wanted to be anywhere else. He felt peace and contentment in every cell of his body, in a way that he had never experienced as a child and had never expected to experience as an adult with the weight of what he had done as a sniper weighing so heavily on his conscience and soul. If he hadn't already loved the woman in his arms with every fiber of his being, he would have loved her for giving him that. But he did love her, loved her so much it filled him with a warm glow just to hear her voice or know that she was near. He had loved her in secret for years, that love growing stronger every day until his heart actually ached with trying to contain it. But he didn't have to even have to try to contain it anymore because she returned his love and wanted to be with him. She was his, now and forever. _His. God, he liked the sound of that_, he acknowledged.

He saw that it was early from the lack of sunshine in the room and knew that he'd only been asleep a couple of hours but he didn't want to go back to sleep. He wanted to lay here and savor the way this fiery, independent woman curled so trustingly against him, her head on his shoulder, her arm across his waist and one leg thrown over him as if holding him in place. _Like he had any intention of going anywhere_. He snorted aloud at the thought, his arms tightening around her. _Not likely_, _she had told him she loved him with words as well as her body and taken him into her bed so she was stuck with him now, forever. _

Despite his happiness and contentment, he had to admit that he was a little nervous about how she would look at things this morning. He'd seen no indication on her part that she wanted to run last night but they had been otherwise occupied the entire night, reaching for each other over and over and doing their best to break the laws of physics. She had only been intent on getting as close to him as possible then but he couldn't help but remember the fear in her eyes earlier and hope he didn't see anything like that when she woke up. _Even if he did, he wasn't going to let her run away from him emotionally or physically,_ he thought mutinously. She was his now and he was going to do whatever it took to keep it that way.

Brennan stirred as Booth's arms tightened almost to the point of pain around her. She didn't even have to open her eyes to know where and who she was with. She could feel the familiar softness of her bed under the parts of her body that weren't draped over her partner. She would have been able to identify the arms holding her so protectively and possessively anywhere, especially after he had given her his first guy hug and, after last night, his body felt as familiar to her as her own where it touched hers. She took a deep breath and she could even recognize him by smell. She had always loved that musky, male, Booth smell and couldn't count the number of times she had gotten all hot and bothered from just being close enough to him to get a whiff over the years.

She felt safe and secure lying in her new lover's arms and knew that she never wanted to leave them. She felt content with an inner radiance that warmed all the cold, barren places that she had tried to hide even from herself over the years. The thing that surprised her the most was that her brain was quiet for the first time in her memory. She was used to her brain being sort of background noise at all times with some idea or problem always whirling around in there, no matter what she was doing. But it had gone silent when her fear had dissipated as if it had done its job and was taking a well-deserved rest. Not that it wasn't available if she needed it, it was, it just wasn't guiding her at the moment, her heart had taken over that job. _Booth loved her_, she thought with a shiver, her heart expanding with love and joy, hardly able to believe it even after the night they had just spent attempting to satisfy the desire that had been building between them for years.

_God, she felt fantastic_. In fact, she couldn't believe how good she felt lying here in his arms with her naked body pressed so closely to his. She had dreamed and fantasized about what it would be like to make love with Booth for years but the reality left even her most erotic imaginings in the dust. What she had felt with Booth last night was completely beyond her experience and had, admittedly, frightened her a little at first. But she wasn't scared any more, she had lost the fear when he had so gently reassured her, shared his own fears with her and used his body to show her how much he adored her. Now, she was just tremendously grateful that they had finally admitted their feelings to each other.

Four little words, I love you, Bones, and her world had changed forever. And in such a good way that she felt like pinching herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming because, if she was, she didn't want to wake up. She would take staying in the dream over going back to her old life any day of the week, even with Booth still being her partner and best friend. With that realization she began to understand how Booth must have felt when he awoke from his coma dream and the life and love that had been so real to him had been snatched away. And she, the one person who should have been there for him during that confusing time, had blithely gone to Guatemala because she was hurt and confused. She had honestly thought that she was doing the right thing, giving Booth time to come to grips with his feelings but now she could see how hurtful her actions must have been to her partner. She knew that if she was pulled from this situation, even if it had only been a fantasy, and Booth disappeared on her, she would be absolutely devastated. He deserved an explanation for her actions and she would most definitely give him that and she would do her very best to make it up to him. Her running days were over and she needed to convince him of that. Luckily, she had the rest of her life to do it because she didn't plan on going anywhere and she was fairly sure that neither did he but if he did she would use her considerable resources to track him down. She had been waiting on Seeley Booth her entire life and no way was he getting away from her now.

"Bones, I know you're awake," Booth said with a low, seductive chuckle, his hand winding in her hair and tilting her face upward. He watched with bathed breath as her eyelids fluttered open then gave a huge sigh of relief as he met calm blue eyes aglow with love, peace, happiness and contentment. At that moment, he thought his heart might burst with joy because he could see she had no intention of running away from them. She was all in just like him.

"Good morning," she purred, stretching with feline grace and smiling up at him_._

"Good morning," he returned, bending his head to bestow a tender kiss on her waiting lips. _"_God, Baby, I'm almost afraid to believe that we're really together like this," he whispered pulling back and resting his forehead against hers, his brown eyes shining with love and pure joy.

"I'm familiar with the feeling," Brennan conceded softly, the soft, warm glow in Booth's eyes turning her insides to mush. "Booth, I need to tell you something." Her hand reached up to cup his cheek and he could hear the hesitation in her voice. Whatever she was about to tell him, she was concerned about his response.

"You can tell me anything, Bones," he assured her solemnly, looking deeply into her eyes. Brennan very much didn't want to ruin the moment but she needed to say this before her courage deserted her.

"I'm sorry I left you and went to Guatemala. I know now how badly that must've hurt you and I am very, very sorry," she apologized in a rush, watching his face anxiously for his reaction.

Booth stiffened as the unexpected words hit him squarely in the chest. He found the fact that she had left him less hurtful at this moment, when he was wrapped up in her arms, than it had ever been but he couldn't even begin to pretend that he hadn't been wounded by her actions. He really didn't want to pretend. Dammit, he deserved an explanation and they needed to start this relationship off right, as in being completely honest with each other. Letting his head fall back on the pillow with a sigh, he gazed at the ceiling for some time, trying to get his thoughts together before he answered her.

"I know you didn't mean to hurt me," he assured her finally, his gaze falling to her face to find her gnawing on her bottom lip looking as anxious as he had ever seen her before. "Hey," he chastised, freeing her bottom lip from her teeth with his thumb before she drew blood. He didn't want to hurt her or make her any more anxious than she already was but she deserved the truth. "I _was_ hurt, Bones, and I was angry because I thought we were headed somewhere when I came out of my coma. But then you just up and left me with no explanation whatsoever, you didn't even say goodbye." Brennan could hear the pain and betrayal in his voice and her eyes filled with tears, her heart breaking at the pain she had caused this strong, compassionate man who just happened to be the love of her life.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice thick with tears. "I'm so sorry, Booth."

Booth saw the tears start coursing down her face and felt like the world's biggest jackass. _What the hell was he trying to do? Drive her away before they even had a chance to really get started?_ Rolling onto his side, he wrapped his arms around her and silently cursed his own idiocy.

"Please don't cry, baby," he begged burying his face in her hair. She buried her face in his shoulder and tried to get her tears under control. "I'm sorry, Bones, we don't have to talk about this now or ever again," Booth offered and it was that selfless act, offering to delay or never get his answers simply because he didn't want to cause her distress, that dried up her tears and stiffened her spine. Her man deserved some answers and he was going to get them.

"Yes, Booth, we do have to talk about this now," she countered, her voice muffled against his chest. He raised his head and waited for her to tilt hers back to meet his eyes.

"Are you sure?" He asked. She nodded firmly, ran her tongue over suddenly dry lips and began her explanation, never losing eye contact.

"I thought we were headed somewhere, too, when you came out of your coma, Booth, and thinking that made me happy and scared at the same time." Booth nodded because he had felt exactly the same way. He gave her an encouraging smile as his hand rubbed soothingly up and down her back. "That last day when I attempted to locate your doctor, I found him and Sweets discussing your brain scans. I didn't mean to eavesdrop," she told him hastily and he nodded, knowing that just wasn't her style. "They were saying that you were in love with the woman in your dreams and it was only coincidental that she looked like me. Sweets expressed his concern that you would transfer that affection onto me but they both felt that your most current brain scan showed that you were definitely not in love with anyone. Your neurologist thought it was a good idea for me to be kept away from you for a while and Sweets agreed," she finished, her voice heavy with the misgivings she had felt at that moment.

Booth had no idea what to say to what she had just revealed. Sweets hadn't revealed the brain scans and what he thought they meant to him until much later. He had to admit that he had been momentarily swayed by the young psychologist's words but it hadn't lasted long, his love for Brennan was just too strong for anyone or anything to convince him that he didn't love her. Since then, he had had nightmares that Brennan would discover the brain scans and, believing wholeheartedly in her world of science, he would never, ever be able to convince her that he loved her with that physical evidence to the contrary. But she was here with him now having known about the scans from the start and, to him, that alone said a hell of a lot about how much she cared for him.

"Was that why you left?" He asked softly, his heart aching at how much those words from the unsuspecting doctors must have shaken her belief in what was happening between them. As emotionally fragile and scientific minded as she was, he couldn't even blame her for running after hearing that.

"No," she answered, to his surprise. "I had no intention of leaving you, Booth. I was determined to be there for you even if it was only as a friend."

"Then why did you leave?" He asked, unable to keep the slightly plaintive note out of his voice. She sighed and rubbed her forehead, trying to gather her scattered thoughts. This was more difficult to talk about than she had expected but she didn't have a choice but to continue.

"I started researching the theory that your neurologist and Sweets had put forth and found several scientific studies supporting their opinions." Booth snorted his opinion of their opinions and Brennan grinned at him. "I have to admit that I was quite upset at the time." Her grin faded as she remembered what came next. "Then Cam arrived," Booth stiffened at the hostile note that had entered Brennan's voice and instinctively knew that he was not going to like what was coming. "She reiterated the physician's opinion that perhaps it would be better for you if I wasn't around during your recuperation and convinced me I should go to Guatemala." Brennan's teeth were gritted in anger and outrage by the time she finished. She had been able to work with Cam since she returned home but she hadn't even come close to forgetting or forgiving what the other woman had said to her.

"_She did what_?" bellowed Booth and Brennan jumped, her eyes going wide at the volume of his voice and the anger contained within it. Booth couldn't believe Cam had taken it upon herself to interfere in his life like that. _What the hell did she think she was doing? And why would she want to get Brennan out of the way? _Cam had to have seen how much he and Brennan's relationship was deepening and where that relationship was headed so why would she feel the need to hurt the both of them by pulling a stunt like that? It just didn't make any sense. _Unless she wanted Brennan out of the way to try her luck with you again,_ suggested an insidious little voice in his head. No, that couldn't be it, he and Cam weren't like that anymore and he had made it more than clear to her that they never would be again.

"Calm down, Booth," she urged, her hand slipping around to rub soothingly up and down his back. "She was just trying to protect you." Booth could tell that Brennan actually believed that but, remembering the way that Cam had always been around, hovering and almost clingy, after Brennan had left, he had his doubts.

"What exactly did she say to you, Bones?" he asked gently, keeping the anger out of his voice with a great deal of willpower.

"Does it matter?" she asked with a sigh and a shrug. She was nowhere naïve enough to not know that what Cam had said to her would make Booth angry and she didn't want Booth to feel like he had to choose sides between her and an old friend. She was certain he would choose her, she just didn't want to put him in the position of having to choose.

"Yes, Bones, it matters. I need to understand what she said to you that made you leave me." There was no way that Brennan could deny that request so she repeated her conversation with Cam word for word. It was engraved on her memory and she didn't have any trouble at all recalling every brutal, hurtful word that had passed Cam's lips.

Booth listened in silence and what he heard made him want to kill someone, namely Dr. Camille Saroyan and not only on his own behalf. Cam had absolutely savaged Brennan, taking advantage of every weakness the other woman possessed and using them to deliberately hurt her. Even now, Booth could hear the pain in Brennan's voice and he wanted to tell her to stop so the pain would stop but he needed to hear every vicious word and he thought she would probably feel better after talking about it. He now had no doubt whatsoever about why Cam had been so brutal, he just couldn't believe she was deluded enough to think they would ever be a couple again knowing how he felt about Brennan.

His anger reached new levels when Brennan repeated the part about how could she stand to know he was seeing someone else when he looked at her but he knew where that was coming from. That must been the way Cam felt when they were dating. More than once, he had called out Brennan's name when he and Cam were having sex and he could understand her wanting to hit back because of that but it wasn't Brennan's fault and she sure as hell didn't deserve to be punished for it. He'd had no idea that Cam was still holding a grudge over something that happened so long ago. Even if revenge had nothing to do with her actions and Cam's motives were pure, which Booth sincerely doubted, the way she had spoken to Brennan and her general interference in their lives was simply unacceptable.

"I'm going to kill her," Booth snarled into the silence when Brennan finished speaking. Taking in his rigid body, his clenched fists and the rage simmering in his eyes, Brennan didn't doubt that he meant it and he had every right to be angry. While she was gone, Brennan had figured out that Cam had wanted another shot at Booth as a lover. That had almost put her on a plane headed home but she had finally decided that if that was what Booth wanted she had no right to interfere and if he wasn't interested she had nothing to worry about.

"You can't kill her, Booth," Brennan soothed, her hand moving to his chest and stroking it lightly.

"Why not?" he demanded, incensed that someone he had considered one of his oldest and dearest friends had stabbed him in the back like that. Dammit, he had gone to her for advice on whether or not he should tell Brennan that he loved her and he had been touched when she seemed so protective of Brennan's feelings. But the thing that stung the most was that he had given her advice much more weight than that he received from Sweets. Now he couldn't help but look on that advice with suspicion.

"Well, if you kill her, Booth, you'll wind up going to prison and that means I'll have to get a new partner. What if they try to make Perotta my permanent partner?" she shuddered with very real dread at the thought. She thought Perotta was an adequate agent but she had strongly disliked the woman ever since Perotta had made it abundantly clear that she was attracted to Booth. Brennan was so lost in the thoughts of how awful it would be to have the other woman in her life on a daily basis that she was startled when Booth's chest began to shake under her ear. Looking up, she could see that amusement was replacing some of his anger but he was still plenty angry with Cam.

"So, I can't kill Cam because you don't want to break in a new partner?" he asked facetiously, grinning down at her.

"Yes," she was deadly serious and that increased Booth's amusement.

"Okay, I won't kill her," he conceded, "but I will have a nice, long chat with her." Brennan could tell by the tone of his voice it wasn't going to be a pleasant chat. For Cam at least.

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" she asked, gnawing on her lip.

"Talking to Cam?" Booth looked puzzled at Brennan's nod. "Why wouldn't it be a good idea?"

"Booth, this happened months ago and I never told you. If you talk to her about it now, she will, no doubt, wonder what has changed in our relationship that would make me tell you now. What if she deduces that we're together?" Brennan asked and Booth's puzzlement grew. He didn't care if Cam knew they were together. Hell, he didn't care if the entire world knew they were together.

"What if she does?" he queried with a raised brow.

"Booth, if she was jealous enough to try to break us up when we weren't even together, how do you think she will react to knowing that we are a couple?" Booth had to admit that Brennan had a valid point. Cam had backed off and Booth hadn't seen any indication from her that she was interested in more than friendship since right after his brain surgery. But he hadn't really picked up on that until months after the fact and he might just be missing the clues because he didn't see Cam as more than a friend any longer.

Not that Cam could break them up now, nothing could do that but she was, technically, Brennan's boss and could make things very, very difficult for the partners. He really couldn't see Cam going in for petty spite because she was jealous but, then again, he never would have thought that she would deliberately hurt Brennan and try to drive her away from him. He guessed that jealousy sometimes turned good people into cruel, petty individuals. That thought triggered another. Brennan was or at least technically had been dating his boss's boss and he couldn't imagine the other man was going to be pleased that she was now with Booth since they had both denied anything personal between them and Andrew was extremely smitten with Brennan. Crap, he could most definitely make Booth's life miserable. The one good thing was that even if they were found out, Andrew had assured Booth that a personal relationship alone wasn't grounds for them to be broken up as partners during one of his fishing expeditions to find out if they were involved.

"What about Andrew?" Booth was secure in Brennan's love for him but he needed to know how she felt about the other man.

"What about him?" she asked dismissively and that told Booth everything he needed to know. Brennan gasped as her light speed brain put everything together. "Oh, Booth, if he finds out about us will he make things difficult for you?"

"I don't know," Booth admitted. He just didn't know the man well enough to guess what his reaction would be.

"So, it is only logical that we keep this new development in our relationship a secret," she said and he could only agree, not liking the thought of them sneaking around. Sneaking around made it seem like they were ashamed of their relationship and that just wasn't true. He wanted to shout it from the rooftops but he could see how that might complicate their lives and they needed some time just for them before things started to get complicated.

"I guess so," he conceded, "but I don't like it."

"Neither do I," Brennan admitted but she could also see that it was the logical, rational step to take considering the circumstances. "Just remember that what is between us is ours," she urged, hoping his own words would make Booth more comfortable with hiding their relationship. Brennan wasn't exactly thrilled that they would have to be completely circumspect in public and could only show their real feelings for each other in private but she didn't see any way around it at the moment. Booth finally nodded his agreement with a grin.

"Are we finished talking now?" she asked politely, her hands moving over his body in caresses that no one would consider polite.

"That would all depend on what you have in mind," Booth teased, his breath catching in his throat as she barely moved her head and took one of his nipples between her sharp little teeth. "Oh, yeah, we're done talking," he assured her, his hand tangling in her hair and tilting her head up to meet his descending lips. He wanted to be slow and tender with her but the instant their lips touched tenderness vanished and hot, hungry need took over and they were both lost to anything other than the passion that ignited between them so easily.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hope you like this one. This is the last chapter of the back-story and we will be finding out what the squints have in mind with the next chapter.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Over the next few months, Booth and Brennan grew incredibly close, both becoming more and more sure of each other's love and the knowledge that they were both fully committed to making this relationship work. They did have a few close calls, almost getting caught several times getting physical at the Jeffersonian. They did manage to keep their hands off of each other when they weren't alone but that was about the best they could do. They were able to hide their physical relationship from everyone but no way could they hide the growing emotional intimacy from people who knew them as well as Brennan's fellow squints.

Somewhere around the fourth month they had been together, Angela had confronted Brennan and bluntly asked if she and Booth were sleeping together. Brennan had simply blinked at her best friend and responded with, "What in the world would make you think that, Ange?" Angela had immediately backed off, apologizing profusely for her suspicious nature.

That same day, Cam had cornered Booth and asked him the same thing. Booth no longer considered Cam the friend he had at one time but he had cooled down considerably since Brennan had initially told him what Cam had done. He was able to be civil to her but he wouldn't be sharing any secrets with her anytime soon. So, he had simply fallen back on the old we're just partners bullshit, shocked when she had actually bought it and not feeling at all bad about lying to her. That night he and Brennan had discussed the possibility of just telling the squints about them but both knew it wouldn't stop there. If they told the squints, it would be all over the Jeffersonian and the FBI within a matter of hours which could lead to problems for Booth with Andrew.

Over the months, Brennan had turned down invitation after invitation from the Deputy Director. She had, at first, told him that she had come to the conclusion that it would be inappropriate for her to date someone in a position of authority over Booth. Andrew had smiled, patted her hand, assured her that he could separate work from his personal life and asked her out to a concert the next weekend. At that point, Brennan had been exasperated and simply declined the invitation, hoping that if she ignored him, he would just go away. He didn't.

It seemed like every time she was in the Hoover building, she ran into Andrew. She had actually run the numbers and, just as she had suspected, that coincidence was statistically improbable so she could only assume he was on the lookout for her which was kind of creepy. He was in no way inappropriate, he was just there asking her out every time she turned around all goofy and grinning and so completely clueless that she wanted to just slug him so he would go away. Since slugging him wasn't really a viable option, she had finally told him that she was seeing someone else then felt a little bad when his face fell. She had, after all, encouraged him at one point. His question of, "Does Booth know about this other man?" made her reconsider how clueless he actually was. Pretending not to have heard the question, she excused herself and studiously avoided him from there on out.

Booth and Brennan's first public spectacle had occurred three days later and had been a real disagreement, that it succeeded in throwing everyone off the scent of them being a couple was merely a side benefit that they had since taken full advantage of. Since Cam and Angela's attempted interrogations, Booth and Brennan had scrupulously avoided even the most innocent physical contact in public, afraid that it would give them away. They had grown so used to the constant touching that it was killing them to be so very close to each other and not touch for the very long hours they were at work and in other peoples company. They were able to get it out of their systems when work time was over and play time began but the stress of keeping the two parts of their lives segregated with such stringent restrictions was beginning to tell on the both of them after just those few days. They even discussed just coming clean but the bottom line was that they both liked the way things were now. No one bothered them wanting intimate details of their sex life or tried to interfere by offering unnecessary advice or tried to break them up as a couple or partners. They were together and they were happy and that's how they wanted to keep things. Unfortunately, they appeared to be the only ones pleased with the status quo.

Andrew stuck his head in Booth's office and entered with a sigh of disappointment when he saw that Booth was alone. Booth wasn't a genius but, then again, he didn't have to be to know the other man was looking for his Bones. His hands curled into fists as he thought about how persistent the other man had been even after Brennan had made it clear she wasn't interested. The overprotective alpha male in him wanted to beat the crap out of the other man for daring to even look at what was his. The logical, rational man wanted to keep his job so he simply looked at the other man with a raised brow as Andrew dropped listlessly into the chair in front of his desk.

"Is there something I can help you with, Deputy Director?" Booth asked politely.

"I certainly hope so, Booth," Andrew answered straightening and leaning forward in his chair. "Since you and Temperence are so close, I was hoping you could give me some insight into where I went wrong with her." Booth couldn't believe what he was hearing. Brennan had told him about her last encounter with Hacker and they had both thought even he would take the hint that she was involved with someone else. They had apparently imbued him with intelligence he didn't possess because he had to be an insensitive moron to essentially be asking Booth to give him hints on how to win the heart of Dr. Temperence Brennan. _Was Hacker really that clueless or was he just messing with him?_ It didn't really matter because he wouldn't be getting any encouragement from Booth. In fact, Booth was more than happy to burst the bubble of whatever hope the other man was still carrying around.

"I don't discuss my partner's personal life," he said firmly. Ignoring what Booth had just said, Hacker leaned forward eagerly.

"Is she really seeing someone else?" Hacker sounded as if he didn't believe it and Booth was more than happy to disabuse him of that notion.

"Yes, she's seeing someone," Booth confirmed.

"Is it serious?" asked Hacker, obviously grasping at straws and not wanting to let go of his little fantasy of him and Brennan together.

"Yes, it's serious," _as in we're basically living together and I'm going to marry that woman the first chance I get,_ thought Booth. Hacker's shoulders slumped in defeat and he got to his feet.

"Well, you can't blame a guy for trying," he said with a sad smile. _The hell he couldn't,_ fumed Booth. He could and would blame every male who showed an interest in his Bones for the rest of their lives. Besides, he had already tried to subtly warn Hacker off and the other man had either not gotten the message or had chosen to ignore it. It was time for some plain speaking.

"Bones asked me to speak with you and request that you back off and stop asking her out," Booth told the surprised Hacker, meeting the other man's eyes levelly. Brennan hadn't really asked him to intercede on her behalf but his conscience didn't even twinge over the little white lie. Boss's boss or not, this guy needed to understand that Brennan was out of his reach and always would be.

"It seems like I really don't have a choice," Hacker muttered pulling his somewhat tattered dignity around him and standing up straight and tall. "Please give Dr. Brennan my apologies. I'm just now seeing that she could have considered my invitations badgering and I never wanted that. She's one hell of a special woman, Booth. You might think long and hard about that before you let someone else waltz off with her." Hacker laughed in genuine amusement at the shock on Booth's face. "Don't look so surprised, Booth. Despite my recent behavior, I'm not an idiot and anyone can see the two of you care about each other very much. You have my word that you and Dr. Brennan won't be punished in any way if you ever choose to develop a personal relationship." With that Hacker was out the door, whistling jauntily while Booth was still trying to get over his surprise that the other man had just given him and Brennan his blessings and assured him that they would remain partners as long as they wanted to regardless of their personal relationship. _Damn, now he couldn't even dislike the guy_, he conceded, standing up and grabbing his coat, eager to impart this conversation to Brennan.

Booth knew something was up the instant he entered the lab. There was an almost eerie silence hanging over the place. A silence that was only present when the love of his life was in a royal snit and terrifying the natives and everyone tiptoed around so as to not draw her notice or incite her wrath. Spotting the woman in question on the platform, Booth moved forward, swiped his security card and bounded up the steps of the platform. He was amused at the _Oh, thank God you're here_ looks he received from Cam, Hodgins and Angela who were huddled in a corner watching Brennan cautiously. His entire attention focused on Brennan who was currently busy terrifying her interns if their expressions were anything to go by and he settled in to enjoy the show.

Brennan stood on one side of the steel table with her arms crossed over her chest, her foot tapping the floor impatiently, eying the four interns on the other side of the table suspiciously. Daisy, Wendell, Fischer and Mr. Nigel-Murray looked back at her as if they were afraid to move or speak and draw Brennan's obviously irate attention on themselves individually. _They looked like they were in front of a firing squad_, Booth thought in amusement wondering what they had done to get Brennan so stirred up.

"I'm only going to ask this one more time," Brennan said, the annoyance in her tone telling Booth she had already asked several times. "Which one of you did this?" she pointed to the skull on the table and Booth moved closer to see what she was referring to, whistling under his breath when he saw the spider web fractures radiating from an indentation on the top of the skull. Looking over to the four interns, he saw them all dropping their eyes and looking everywhere but at Brennan or the skull, apparently having no intention of answering Brennan. _This was bad_. Brennan hated not having answers but not nearly as much as she hated being defied or remains being compromised. That combination tended to make her more than a little cranky, Booth knew from firsthand experience.

Brennan sighed and rubbed her forehead. She was developing a nasty headache after putting up with Daisy Wicks all morning. Daisy had obviously abandoned whatever coping mechanisms Sweets had taught her to deal with her manic personality disorder. She had been like a perky, hyperactive stalker who was in Brennan's face begging for attention every time Brennan turned around no matter how many times she was chastised for her behavior. Brennan had wanted to scream in frustration. Actually, she had wanted to strangle Daisy with her bare hands and dispose of the body. Unfortunately, they weren't alone in Limbo so Brennan doubted she would get away with it. Plus, oh yeah, it would be highly inappropriate for her to kill one of her interns, dammit. Sweets was going to owe her big time for the rest of his life for giving Daisy another chance not to mention letting her leave the Jeffersonian alive today.

To get the other woman out of her hair, Brennan had selected one of the skeletons in Limbo that had some interesting and not often seen characteristics and sent the four interns to lay it out on the platform. She had intended to let them do an assessment to see if they picked up on the abnormalities but when she had followed them after putting away the skeleton she had been identifying, she had been appalled at what she found. The instant she looked at the skull, she could clearly see that it had been dropped and the slightest pressure along the spider webbing would shatter that entire portion of the skull. It had been in pristine condition when it left Limbo so it didn't take her genius brain to deduce that it had been dropped by one of the interns. Eying the interns accusingly, she demanded to know who was responsible for the damage. To her surprise, no one answered and she wasn't quite sure how to handle the situation from there. She wasn't used to her subordinates not jumping to do her bidding and she had never, ever met open defiance from them before, not even when she had first started teaching.

Brennan knew she was viewed as a hard ass by most people, including her students and that didn't really bother her. In fact, she deliberately promoted that reputation with her students. She just didn't have the social skills to be one of those teachers that gave you the warm fuzzies and whom you remembered with affection twenty years later. But she had been determined to be the best teacher she could possibly be and she had noticed almost immediately that her students reacted to her sober approach by putting forth their very best efforts in an attempt to please her.

_These four didn't seem to be concerned with pleasing her_, she thought sourly, eying the interns and Brennan wasn't without sympathy for their predicament. She understood that accidents happened but they needed to understand that the need for care with the remains was paramount. With this particular set of remains, there was really no harm done but that would not have been the situation if these skull they had damaged had been for a case. Evidence would have been compromised and that could, foreseeably, have allowed a guilty person to escape punishment. She briefly explained this to the interns but they still had nothing to say and Brennan's aggravation moved on to full blown anger. She was upset but not really all that angry about the skull damage itself but she was disappointed in her interns and royally pissed that whoever had dropped the skull wouldn't step up and take responsibility for their actions. That attitude was completely unacceptable to her and she was shocked that she had never seen evidence of such a big character flaw in any of the young people standing before her.

She knew the instant that Booth strode up on the platform, she could actually feel his presence but she was so ticked off that his being there didn't have its usual calming effect on her. She could feel him move up behind her but didn't pull her attention away from the guilty looking interns as she gave them one last chance to come clean, a chance that they chose not to take advantage of.

"Fine," she finally snapped, "since no one is willing to take responsibility for this incident, I have no choice but to penalize all of you. I can't have any of you working with remains until I know who is responsible for the damage to this skull. That being said, you are of no use to me or this program if I can't trust you so go home until further notice..," she was cut off by Cam's gasp of horror.

"Dr. Brennan, is that really necessary?" Cam's voice was almost pleading, the thought of rounding up more assistants for Brennan was horrendous.

"Yes, Cam, it is necessary," Cam swallowed hard and made no further protest at the look of icy disdain Brennan sent her way. She did give Booth a pleading look, but Booth was only monitoring the situation out of concern for Brennan. This was Brennan's ball game and she should be allowed to deal with her interns as she saw fit. Normally he wouldn't have dreamed of interfering but he could see how upset his partner was. She was practically vibrating with anger and outrage and she, like most people, sometimes said things she didn't mean when she got like that then had to stand by her words because she was too damn stubborn to take them back after she calmed down.

Brennan turned that icy look on the interns who immediately started fidgeting. "I will also be reviewing your suitability to remain in this program." All four interns gasped and blanched.

"I did it." Four voices rang out simultaneously, making Brennan even angrier. She wasn't playing games here. She hadn't said that as a threat to get them to talk, she had simply been stating a fact and that they were now apparently willing to talk didn't buy them any points with her.

"Whoa, Bones, that's a little harsh, don't you think?" Booth hoped the interns appreciated that he was about to draw the irate anthropologist's ire onto himself and take one for the team before she got any more upset with them. Brennan swung to face him with her hands on her hips, eyes narrowed and blazing with anger. _God, she was gorgeous when she was pissed_. It took willpower Booth didn't know he possessed to resist the urge to pull her into his arms and kiss her out of her bad mood despite their audience.

"Do I try to tell you how to do your job, Booth?" she demanded.

"Yep," he answered blithely. Brennan gasped in outrage and her eyes narrowed even more.

"I most certainly do not tell you how to do your job, Booth," she hissed through clenched teeth, stepping closer.

"Yes, you do, Bones. You tell me how to do everything," he insisted, exaggerating more than a little.

"I do not!" she emphasized each word with a hard poke to his chest and Booth's temper began to stir. He really hated it when she did that and she knew it.

"Of course you do, Bones. You just can't help bossing me around but you like to call it friendly advice."

"I am not bossy, Booth," she snapped, her voice rising and gave him another poke in the chest for good measure. Booth snorted which was like throwing gasoline on an open fire. Never a good idea. "And I only give you advice because you need it," she yelled directly into his face, poking him in the chest again.

"Ha," he yelled right back, taking possession of the annoying finger that kept poking him. "I do not need you telling me that my testicles are going to shrink if I don't eat organic."

"Well, somebody had to do it. And I believe I said your entire genitalia was at risk of shrinking. That would include your penis as well as your testicles," she assured him very loudly. Booth was saved from answering her by a strangled sound coming from behind him. Turning, he saw Cam and Angela with their hands over their mouths, their faces almost purple from the effort of holding back their laughter. Hodgins had his head buried in his arms that were crossed on the worktable, his shoulders shaking suspiciously. The four interns were simply gaping at them. Booth could feel his face flaming as he recalled exactly what he and Brennan had just said to each other and he met Brennan's eyes with a sheepish smile. She bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing at his mortified expression and nodded when he jerked his head toward her office. Without a word, they held their heads high and left the platform, trying to ignore the howling laughter that followed them to Brennan's office.

Brennan had been stunned and thrilled when Booth told her about his conversation with Hacker and they had seriously considered coming clean with the others. But they still didn't know how Cam would react and they wanted as much time as possible in their own little cocoon before they had to deal with outside influences. They agreed to keep their relationship a secret for at least a little while longer.

The interns had shuffled into Brennan's office and confessed later that afternoon that they had all been responsible for the damage to the skull that had upset her earlier. According to them, Fischer had been holding the skull, studying the minute pits on its surface. When he had commented on their presence, Mr. Nigel-Murray had hurried over and wanted to have a look but, apparently couldn't wait his turn because he had made a grab for the skull. Fischer had jerked the skull back out of Mr. Nigel-Murrays reach but his hold on it wasn't nearly as secure as he had thought and the skull went flying. Wendell and Daisy both looked on in horror and made a dive for it at the same time. Unfortunately, Daisy had tripped over her own shoelace and gone down, arms instinctively reaching out to break her fall. Her hand had closed tightly over a portion of Wendell's anatomy that she had no business touching, causing him to yelp and instinctively move backward to get away from her painful grip. He had tripped over his own feet and joined Daisy amid a tangle of limbs, leaving the skull to fall unimpeded onto the floor. They all apologized profusely and promised to be more careful in the future.

Brennan sat and stared at the fidgeting interns for several minutes, believing every word of what they had just told her. Hell, she was a bestselling author and she couldn't have made something like that up. It also explained their earlier reticence to give her an explanation. She wouldn't have wanted to tell that one either. Booth was laughing so hard he was sprawled on the sofa because he couldn't maintain a sitting position. Tears of mirth were running down his face and he was begging her to make them reenact the scene for them. Ignoring him, Brennan studied the red faced interns, debating whether they had been punished enough. _Yes_, she finally decided, _they had been punished enough_. They had seen the damage carelessness could do and they knew the consequences if something like this happened again.

"Your positions within the program are secure," she conceded, holding up a hand to halt the chorus of thank you's coming her way. "I understand that accidents happen but if any of you ever brick wall me again, you will be dismissed immediately. Are we clear?" No one corrected her on her brick wall remark because Booth was still laughing too hard and none of the interns dared. She met each intern's eyes levelly and received a nod of comprehension from each one and the situation had come to an end as far as she was concerned. Without another word, she turned to her computer and the interns slunk out of her office swearing to themselves that they would never do anything else to bring her wrath down on their heads.

Over the next few days, Booth and Brennan had both noticed at about the same time that after their public discussion, people were no longer smirking at them suggestively or asking if they were a couple. So they had come up with the brilliant idea to stage these little discussions whenever appropriate to throw everyone off the scent of their relationship. They didn't use them all that often but they seemed ideal for the purpose they were designed for. Little did they know that their plan was working a little too well and they were soon going to be facing the matchmakers from hell.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hey, guys, sorry for the delay. RL is kicking my ass at the moment. I will try to do better but can't make any promises just yet. I do have two new chapters for you so enjoy and don't forget to review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

_* In Cam's office five days after the start of operation get Booth and Brennan together.*_

"What do you mean you don't know how? What the hell kind of FBI person are you, Sweets? Were you just not paying attention the day they taught you how to spy on people?" Angela demanded, waving her arms around in agitation. She was annoyed that she had spent the last five days subtly questioning everyone she could think of who might actually know who Booth was seeing and she had nothing. No one even had a clue that he was dating anyone. Angela had known that Booth was discreet about his personal life but this level of furtiveness was almost disturbing. And aggravating as all get out because she wasn't used to not being able to find out whatever she wanted to know. She had, so far, resisted interrogating Booth or Brennan but it was beginning to look like those were just about the only options left.

"Angela," Sweets began, desperately trying to hold onto his patience, "I have told you _repeatedly_," there went the patience and his voice was now full of exasperation, "that I am not a field agent. I am a psychologist who just happens to work for the FBI and I wasn't required to learn surveillance techniques." He was pacing the confines of Cam's office, hands on his hips, occasionally rubbing a hand across his eyes. He knew that Angela was just frustrated and was taking it out on him. They were all frustrated and they should be. They had two certified geniuses and two intelligent, ruthless, savvy women working toward a common goal and the only concrete plan they had come up with in five days was to lock the partners in a room in the basement. It was kind of pathetic when you really thought about it so he chose not to think about how much of a failure their little group was so far and concentrated on coming up with something better before Angela had a stroke.

"Ange, calm down," Hodgins advised the fuming artist before she could shoot something back at Sweets and this planning meeting degenerated into a fight between coconspirators. He rose from his chair and went to Angela, putting a friendly arm around her shoulders and giving her a reassuring squeeze. "We will figure this out," he assured her.

"I know we will, Hodgins, but will it be in time?" Angela asked, her voice trembling and full of tears.

"What do you mean, Angela?" asked Cam. Angela spun away from Hodgins' embrace and faced Cam.

"They had another fight yesterday, Cam. That's two this week. If we don't hurry up and come up with something, they're not even going to be speaking to each other and we won't have a chance of getting them together." The earnestness, fear and worry in Angela's office made all of them sit up and take notice. Cam had already been thinking the same thing so she fully agreed with Angela's assessment of the situation.

"I think Angela is right," Cam stated flatly, extremely concerned about what appeared to be escalating hostilities between Booth and Brennan. She was terrified that their time to help the couple was fast running out and knew she would never forgive herself if they didn't wind up together. She and Brennan had gotten their professional relationship back on an even keel but Cam knew she hadn't been forgiven by the good doctor and that even if Brennan did manage to forgive her someday, she would never forget what Cam had done.

Cam had repeatedly tried to pin Booth down and have a conversation with him over the last few days, intent on coming clean and telling him what she had said to Brennan when he was in the hospital and why. But he never seemed to have the time to do more than greet her in passing and she just didn't have the guts to corner him and blurt everything out here. It was going to be hard enough to admit what she had done in a private setting working up to it and she admitted to herself that a strong sense of self preservation was at work as well. When Booth started yelling and she had no doubt there would be yelling, she really didn't want it to be in front of her colleagues and subordinates. It would be embarrassing and undermine her authority. Cam admitted that she deserved public embarrassment and getting yelled at by Booth at the very least but she had to handle this carefully to have any hope of retaining Booth's friendship and she couldn't imagine her life without him in it in some capacity. She, in fact, refused to even consider the possibility that he wouldn't forgive her.

With that in mind, she had stopped by Booth's last night after witnessing the last fight between him and Brennan, hoping that her coming clean would ease some of his hostility toward his partner and they could then move on in their relationship. She had deliberately not gone by until a little after ten, knowing that on a weekday night she would find him alone at that time. It was just one of his rules, no sleepovers on weeknights, so, even if he'd had a date tonight, he should be home or would have sent the woman home by then. Cam was surprised when he wasn't home. She waited until almost midnight until she admitted to herself that he wasn't coming home and that sent a cold chill down her spine. Booth was seriously involved with this other woman if he was spending the night at her place during the week. With a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach, she admitted that they were running out of time, they had to do something, anything. Now. Before it was too late.

"I have a session with them this afternoon," Sweets muttered absently, not pausing in his pacing, just as concerned as the others about Booth and Brennan's deteriorating relationship. He, of course, wouldn't share what actually happened during a session with the others but he didn't see the harm in sharing when they were scheduled.

"Yeah, and you've made so much progress with them so far that all our problems will be solved for sure now," Hodgins snorted sarcastically. He was a little ashamed of his attitude but, dammit, they should be able to do better than this. He was terrified they weren't going to be able to save the partnership that had come to represent so much to all of them that it was turning him surly.

Sweets stiffened with affront then sagged as he admitted to himself that Hodgins had a point, the last two sessions hadn't even made a dent in the attitude of Booth and Brennan. They were both pretty open until he tried to turn the session to their personal life then they both became terse and uncommunicative, looking at him like he was insane to even hint that something personal was going on between them.

"I'm sorry, man," Hodgins offered with a sigh after seeing how Sweets' face fell at his comment. He ran a hand over his face and dropped into a chair almost defeatedly. "What the hell are we going to do?" he demanded of the others. If this had been an investigation, he would have known how to proceed without any doubts but he was apparently clueless about getting their friends together. The one suggestion he had made, to fly Booth and Brennan to the Bahamas then leave them stranded on his private island for a couple of weeks had met with approval from Angela but cries of kidnapping from Sweets and Cam. Hodgins didn't really see the problem because if his plan worked, Booth and Brennan wouldn't press charges and if it didn't their lives were going to be hell anyway so what was a little jail time? Unfortunately, majority ruled in their little circle and he didn't have the juice to get the swing vote.

"We need to find out who the other woman is," Angela insisted, completely focused on finding and annihilating this interloper into their little world. She knew she was almost obsessively fixated on the other woman but it made perfect sense to her to remove the fly in the ointment and things would go back to normal and she desperately needed things to go back to normal. She had made so many mistakes in her own personal life recently that she needed things to be okay between Booth and Brennan before she completely lost hope that there would ever be a happily ever after for her.

"And just how do you suggest we do that, Angela?" Sweets queried reasonably but Angela bristled because she had exhausted her resources trying to find out just that.

"It's not like we can just follow him around until he meets up with her, Angela," Cam soothed then wished she had kept her mouth shut as Angela's eyes narrowed and she smiled in a way that gave Cam cold chills. "No, Angela," Cam said firmly but Angela was off and running and paid no attention whatsoever to her.

"That is perfect, Cam," Angela laughed almost clapping with glee to have a plan. "I'll make out a schedule and we'll all just have to arrange our lives around it. It shouldn't take long…," her voice trailed off as she noticed the others were looking at her with something approaching horror. "What?" she demanded.

"Angela, you can't possibly think it would be acceptable behavior for us to follow Booth," Sweets began calmly only to have Angela turn on him ready to fight for her idea. Hodgins stepped between the two before blood was shed.

"Yeah, Sweets, since we don't have any plans to interfere with Booth's life, following him would really be stepping over the line," he deadpanned, really starting to like this sarcastic side of himself. Sliding an arm around Angela's shoulders, he gently led her toward a chair. "Ange, I think what the boy wonder was trying to say is, are you freaking kidding me?" Angela blinked at Hodgins' aghast expression.

"What's wrong with my idea?" she asked pulling away from Hodgins and facing him with her hands on her hips. Sweets rolled his eyes and resumed his pacing. Cam snorted and looked at Hodgins with a new respect. She was starting to like this sarcastic side of him, too. Hodgins looked Angela in the eye and gave it to her straight.

"Ange, have you forgotten that Booth is armed? With a gun and bullets?" he asked in exasperation.

"Hodgins, Booth would never shoot any of us," Angela dismissed Hodgins' concerns with a wave of her hands.

"I know he wouldn't," Hodgins admitted, swiping a hand across his eyes. "But, Ange, he would spot us in a minute and then the jig would be up." Angela considered that and had to admit that Hodgins was right. Booth would never, ever let something like that slide and he would be able to spot them easily so that meant that them following him was out of the question. But it didn't mean they couldn't have him followed. "You're absolutely right, Hodgins. That is an excellent idea," Angela beamed at him and Hodgins swallowed hard because he had no idea what she was talking about.

"What idea?" he asked cautiously.

"Hiring someone to follow him, of course," she looked like he should have known that without asking and maybe he should have but just the idea of having a stranger following Booth and spying on his private life didn't sit well with Hodgins. It just felt wrong, like that would be taking things too far, way too voyeuristic for his tastes. Maybe it was strange for him to balk there considering what they were doing but that was a line he wasn't willing to cross. Looking around, he saw that Cam and Sweets were just as uncomfortable as he was with the idea.

"No, Ange," he told her firmly, hating the way her face fell and the look of desperation that came into her eyes.

"Then what are we going to do, Hodgins?" she almost whispered, her voice full of tears. He wanted to pull her into his arms and offer her comfort but he didn't feel that he had that right. She was with Wendell now, he reminded himself, unable to resist brushing a stray strand of hair off of her face. He had told her how he felt about her during the pregnancy scare and she had made her choice, he just had to learn to accept it.

"We could always get them drunk," he offered facetiously.

"While I wouldn't normally support getting a couple drunk to work out their problems, in this case, I think it might actually be a good idea," piped in Sweets, "it would certainly lower their inhibitions and they might actually talk things out."

"Or kill each other," inserted Cam borrowing some of Hodgins' sarcasm. "But I agree that it's worth a try," she admitted when the other three looked at her in censure.

"I was really kidding, but I'm good with it," Hodgins threw in.

"Okay," agreed Angela and all four breathed a sigh of relief. It was the first thing they had all agreed on in the last five days.

"When?" asked Sweets, his gut telling him that time was of the essence with the partners.

"It will have to be this weekend because Bren would never get drunk in the middle of the week," Angela sounded like that was a bad thing, the others thought with amusement.

"Okay, how about Friday night?" asked Cam, wanting to get it done so this guilt would stop eating her up inside.

"Works for me," Sweets agreed.

"Me, too," Hodgins had no problem with a night on the town to put things right with the partners. "But, guys, we need to make sure they will show up," he added, a little worried that a simple invitation wouldn't be enough to make sure Booth and Brennan spent the evening together.

"I'll make sure Bren is there," Angela assured them confidently. "But that means it's up to you two to get Booth there." She pointed between Hodgins and Sweets and they both blanched, smiling a little sickly at each other but, really, how hard could it be to convince the guy to go out for a night on the town?


	14. Chapter 14

**Here we go. The second new chapter as promised. Please remember to review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Having all four wisdom teeth removed without anesthesia, by a barber about a hundred years ago would have been less traumatic than trying to convince Booth to go out for a night on the town with the boys, Hodgins decided in frustration Friday morning. They had all decided it would be safer to not mention the girls would be there and pretend that they had accidentally run into each other. Not that any of them expected that to fool Booth but, by the time he figured it out, it wouldn't matter anymore, he and Brennan would be in the same place at the same time and alcohol would be readily available so their goal would have been achieved.

"Come on, Booth," Hodgins followed the FBI agent toward his office, throwing a help me look toward Sweets who had accompanied him on this little endeavor. So far, the good doctor had been less than helpful.

"Look, Hodgins, I understand that you need a guy's night out and I appreciate you inviting me but I have plans for the weekend and they start tonight." The smile on Booth's face and the way his voice softened left neither man in any doubt that Booth's plans included a woman. And lots of sex. _This was bad_, thought Hodgins sharing a desperate look with Sweets, _Angela would kill them if they failed to get Booth to the club tonight, especially if she found out Booth was with the floozy instead of with Brennan_. Booth missed the look as he walked behind his desk and started sorting through his mail.

"It's not just me that needs the night out, Booth," Hodgins had made himself sound like a pathetic, broken hearted loser who needed the moral support of some of his guy friends but that apparently wasn't enough to convince Booth to cancel his sexathon and offer that moral support. Hodgins was almost hurt and definitely outraged by that until he remembered that this was all pretend to get Booth to the appointed place at the appointed time. He frantically cast around for something else that would convince the other man to go along with their plan. Nothing readily came to mind so he fell back on the advice Angela had given him to achieve his goal. He flat out lied. Hodgins figured his pride and self respect had taken a big enough hit already so it was time for Sweets to take one for the team. "Daisy broke up with Sweets," he leaned closer to Booth and told him the lie without a second's hesitation.

Booth paused in going through his mail and glanced up at Sweets who had stiffened at Hodgins' words. Hodgins shot the younger man a look that told him not to open his mouth. To his surprise, Sweets went along with the lie, his hands found their way into his pockets and his shoulders slumped, his gaze falling to the floor, the very picture of a dejected, jilted man. "Oh man, I'm really sorry, Sweets," Booth offered sincerely and Sweets nodded while looking at his feet.

"So he really needs to be able to forget his broken heart for one night, Booth," Hodgins was getting really good at this, he realized as Booth looked almost torn. Booth really wasn't torn. He felt bad for Hodgins with the Angela/Wendell situation and he really felt bad for Sweets, knowing how that first big love going wrong could sting but he and Brennan really jealously guarded their weekends together. They might not do anything special but it was their time and they didn't allow anything to interfere with that.

"Look, guys, I really wish I could help you out but…," he was interrupted by his cell phone. Holding up a finger to indicate he needed a minute, he immediately answered. "Hold on a second," he told whoever was on the other end of the line and Hodgins immediately knew it was her, the other woman, on the phone by the husky tone of Booth's voice. Covering the receiver, Booth met Hodgins' eyes. "I really need to take this call." Hodgins nodded, crossed his arms and prepared to listen in but Booth raised a brow and nodded toward the door. Hodgins reluctantly shuffled toward the door with Sweets on his heels. "Shut the door behind you, please," Booth called pleasantly.

Hodgins pulled the door to a little harder than was strictly necessary, more than a little frustrated and beginning to understand Angela's desire to get her hands on and do physical damage to the mystery woman.

"Why did you lie to him about me and Daisy?" Sweets hissed almost in Hodgins ear, making him jump and give the younger man a warning glance.

"Personal space, dude," Hodgins cautioned Sweets moving back a couple of steps. "He was obviously going to turn us down and you weren't being any help," Hodgins grouched. "It was the only thing I could think of," he admitted with a shrug.

"I think we should stick to the truth," Sweets' self righteousness was beginning to get on Hodgins' last nerve.

"Okay, then you march in there and tell him that we're trying to break him and his current squeeze up so that he and Brennan can start bumping uglies." Hodgins voice was rising with his irritation and the last three words rang out clearly in the suddenly silent room. Snickers from around the room alerted the two men who were standing nose to nose that they had been overheard. The way some of the people in the room were looking at them let them know that their conversation had been misunderstood by at least some of the agents in the room. Realizing just what those people were thinking at approximately the same time, Hodgins and Sweets sprang apart, looked at each other in horror and immediately headed toward different exits from the room.

*Back at the Jeffersonian*

Angela wandered into Brennan's office being careful to look so despondent that even her clueless best friend would be able to see something was wrong. She felt a little bit bad about playing Brennan but in the long run, it was for her own good so she considered it justified. With a big, dejected sigh, she sank into one of the chairs in front of Brennan's desk and waited for her friend to look up. And waited. And waited. Angela sighed again, louder, but Brennan's fingers continued to fly across the keyboard of her computer and she was oblivious to Angela's presence. Angela cleared her throat rather dramatically and got nothing. Beginning to get more than a little irritated, Angela leaned forward and slapped her open palm against Brennan's desk, quickly leaning back and resuming her dejected look when Brennan jumped and blinked at her in confusion.

"Did you hear something?" Brennan asked looking around for whatever had made that very loud noise that had so startled her. Angela tried to look innocent and shrugged then sighed very loudly as Brennan's attention turned back to her. "Is something wrong, Ange?" Brennan asked in genuine concern and Angela felt her first real twinge of guilt for what she was about to do. Not enough to stop, mind you, but she did feel bad.

"I need some advice, Bren," Angela said softly. "Some personal advice," she added.

"From me?" Brennan's eyes widened then narrowed suspiciously.

"Of course from you, Bren. You're my best friend, aren't you?" Angela cajoled, getting the impression that Brennan wasn't going to be as big of a pushover as she had expected.

"Yes, Angela, I am your friend but as I recall, the last personal advice that I gave you was discarded in favor of following Sweets' decree of a period of abstinence. Perhaps you should consult with Sweets about whatever it is that's bothering you." Angela frowned at the stiffness and formality of Brennan's speech. There was no malice in the words. In fact, she sounded almost hurt and Angela realized for the first time that she had inadvertently hurt Brennan's feelings with the way she had reacted to her advice. Angela felt like a jerk, just then realizing that because Brennan didn't often discuss her emotions, they all sometimes treated her as if she didn't have them and they all knew better than that. Brennan was one of the most caring people Angela had ever known.

Angela was instantly out of her seat and around the desk, her act forgotten. "I'm sorry I hurt your feelings, Bren," she offered sincerely, taking Brennan's hand. Brennan didn't even bother to deny it. She was often deeply hurt by the way everyone just dismissed the possibility that she might have some insight into personal interactions. Booth was the only person who encouraged her to express her opinions and made her believe in her own insight. The others only made her doubt herself more.

"It's okay, Ange," Brennan smiled at Angela, squeezing her hand. "But it might still be best if you consulted someone else rather than me for any advice." Angela could hear the doubt in Brennan's voice and determined that she was going to have to do better or she wasn't going to deserve the label of best friend.

"No," Angela said firmly. "I need to talk to my best friend." And as she said the words, she knew they were true. She desperately needed to talk to Brennan about the choices she had made in her life recently and where she wanted to go from here because she didn't have a clue. She felt like her entire life was completely out of her control and she didn't know what to do about it. Brennan might not give politically correct advice but she actually had a real knack for stripping a problem down to the bare basics and asking the hard questions that most people avoided.

"Are you sure?" Brennan still looked a little skeptical but Angela didn't have any doubts.

"Absolutely," she assured her with a sunny smile.

"Okay, then, what did you want to talk about?" Angela only then remembered her true purpose for being here and she squirmed a little uncomfortably. "I was actually hoping we could go out tonight. You know, glug, glug, woo, woo," she grinned hopefully.

"I don't know, Ange," Bren chewed on her lower lip in indecision. She had felt like there was a distance between her and Angela recently that she didn't really like and she welcomed the chance to narrow that distance but she also had some interesting plans for Seeley Booth tonight.

"You're going to make me do it, aren't you, Bren?" Angela teased.

"Do what?" Brennan queried wide eyed.

"Play the best friend card," Angela retorted. "Please, Bren, I really need you to do this for me," she added and Brennan knew when she was beat. She had shared her confusion over the change in her and Angela's relationship, especially how hurt she had been when Angela had questioned how they could even be friends over the pig she wanted to save, with Booth and she knew he would understand and encourage her to take this chance to strengthen their relationship.

"Okay," Brennan conceded softly. Angela grinned at her and became a dynamo of motion.

"Come on," she urged, pulling on Brennan's arm to get her out of her chair.

"Where are we going?" Brennan asked, laughing.

"Shopping," Angela singsonged, ignoring Brennan's groan. "We're going out tonight, Bren and we are going to look fine when we do it. Best friend card," she threatened when it looked like Brennan might balk.

"Fine," Brennan knew from experience it was better to just give Angela what she wanted when she got like this. "I need to make a call first." Angela nodded and went to her own office to get her purse. Cam followed her into her office.

"Are we all set for tonight?" she asked anxiously.

"Of course," Angela assured her. "Why don't you come shopping with us, Cam?" Angela invited impulsively.

"I really can't, Angela. I have a lot to do this afternoon." Angela's eyes narrowed at the way Cam looked everywhere but at her when she told that crock of bull. Angela had sensed some undercurrents of hostility from Brennan toward Cam ever since Brennan had returned from Guatemala. At the time, she had thought it was simply some new territorial issue they were arguing over but she was beginning to see it was something deeper than that. Angela's gut told her that Cam had done or said something to Brennan personally that was at least partially responsible for the situation they were now facing.

"What's going on with you and Brennan, Cam?" Cam's startled look told her that she was correct in her assumption but Cam was saved from answering by Brennan entering the room.

"Are you ready?" Brennan asked Angela, her eyes moving over and then dismissing Cam's presence. Angela didn't notice how uncomfortable Cam looked and determined then and there to find out just what the hell Cam was holding back from the rest of them. If they were going to fix this mess, then they needed all the details she justified to herself.

"You two have fun," Cam said politely, quickly making her escape. Angela's narrowed gaze followed her out of the office then focused on Brennan with a determination that made Brennan look around nervously.

"Bren, what's going on with you and Cam?" asked Angela softly. Angela had taught Brennan the big, innocent eyes so she wasn't fooled for a second when her friend used them on her.

"I don't know what you mean, Ange," Brennan blinked at Angela and Angela's eyes narrowed because if she hadn't known the other woman so well, she would have been fooled. _When had Brennan learned to prevaricate so well and from whom?_ No matter, Angela was certain she could extract the information she needed.

Brennan didn't like the look on Angela's face at all. It told her that her friend wanted to know something and she wouldn't stop until she got the information she was after. Booth had taught her diversionary tactics and she didn't hesitate to use them now. "Did you know that Ms. Wicks broke up with Sweets?" Brennan asked a little desperately.

"No," Angela gasped, sufficiently diverted for the moment. "When?" she demanded, leading the way out of her office.

"I'm not certain," Brennan admitted, "but Sweets appears to be very upset."

"So, Daisy broke up with him?" Angela was trying to wrap her head around what Brennan was telling her and she didn't like it. In her opinion, there had already been way too much heartbreak going around the lab.

"That is my understanding of the situation," Brennan nodded, missing the way Angela glared daggers at a very startled Daisy Wicks.

"Excuse me, Sweetie, I'll be right back," Angela patted Brennan's arm and hurried toward Hodgins just as he hurried back into the lab. Angela caught up with Hodgins halfway across the floor of the lab. "Are we all set for tonight?" she asked cheerfully.

"Um, yeah, I think so," mumbled Hodgins, avoiding her eyes.

"You think so or you know so?" Angela demanded, laying a hand on his arm and pulling him to a stop, waiting for him to finally meet her eyes. Her brows rose at his flushed cheeks but she didn't ask.

"Yeah, Ange," he sighed, "Booth will be there," he promised, knowing he wouldn't let Angela down not matter what he had to do to make it happen.

"Thanks, Hodgins," Angela beamed at him and stroked his arm.

"You're welcome," he sighed, feeling like the world's biggest wuss. _In fact, he and Booth should be able to relate well because neither could say no to the women they wanted to be in their lives, _he thought some of his lost humor returning. "You just make sure that Dr. B. looks hot tonight and let nature take its course," he suggested with a laugh.

"Oh, don't you worry, Hodgie, you boys won't know what hit you when you get a good look at us tonight," she promised with a sultry laugh that had Hodgins swallowing hard. He was already more than halfway afraid of just that. "Gotta go," Angela told him absently, noting Daisy moving swiftly toward Brennan. Other than her breaking up with Sweets, Angela didn't have anything personal against Daisy, she just didn't want Brennan to be upset or angry all afternoon and the intern tended to have just that effect on the anthropologist.

"Excuse me, Dr. Brennan." Brennan turned to see a perky Daisy Wicks beaming at her.

"Did you need something Ms. Wicks?" Brennan asked.

"I've finished with the remains you wanted me to identify in Limbo. Would you like me to assist you this afternoon?" Daisy asked hopefully and Brennan repressed a shudder at the thought. Admittedly, she had developed a much higher tolerance for Daisy recently but she could still only tolerate her in small doses.

"I'm afraid I will be out of the office this afternoon," Brennan had never been grateful for Angela dragging her shopping before but she was now, "so I can assign you more remains from Limbo if you like." Brennan looked up from an email from Booth telling her that he was going out with Hodgins and Sweets tonight to try to cheer Sweets up to see that Daisy looked absolutely dejected and Brennan mistakenly thought it was because she was thinking about Sweets, not because she wouldn't get to work with her idol for the afternoon. Brennan had been working on her interpersonal skills and Booth lavishly praised the way they were developing so she suddenly decided to try them out on Daisy. "Why don't you just go home early," she offered, truly empathetic about how hard it was to concentrate on work with a broken heart.

"What? Are you firing me again?" Daisy practically screeched in wide eyed panic.

"What? No," Brennan assured the wild eyed young woman, laying a calming hand on her arm, seeing that Angela was hurrying toward them. "Of course, I'm not firing you again, Daisy. I just thought you might benefit from some relaxation time since you and Sweets broke up." Brennan had more to say but she didn't get the chance. Angela didn't even slow down, she just grabbed Brennan's arm and dragged her toward the exit, not even sparing Daisy a glance, determined to get Brennan away from the other woman before she was upset. Daisy was so stunned by Brennan using her given name that it took a few seconds for the rest of what Brennan had said to sink in.

"_Lance and I what_?" she screeched just after the doors closed behind Brennan and Angela. Brennan jumped and partially turned back toward the lab, hearing the horrific screech but not able to make out the words.

"Come on, Bren," Angela urged, refusing to let go of her arm and dragging her toward the exit.

"But, Ange, maybe we should see what happened," Brennan tried to slow her friend down but it was a lost cause.

"Not our problem, Bren. We're off the rest of the day. The only thing we have to worry about is looking beautiful for tonight." Giving in, Brennan didn't even question why they had to look beautiful if it was girl's night out, she simply decided she could give her best friend this afternoon and go along with whatever she wanted her to do. How bad could it be to get all dressed up and go out for a little glug, glug, woo, woo?


	15. Chapter 15

**Hey, guys, I'm back for a couple of days and I have a new chapter for you. Enjoy. Please don't forget to review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

_It hadn't started out all that bad_. Brennan had expected that Angela would insist on dressing her for their night out so she hadn't been at all surprised about that. Although she had been more than a little skeptical of the privileges that Angela insisted came along with holding this previously unheard of best friend card, she found herself giving Angela the benefit of the doubt and caving to all of Angela's demands. By the third time Angela used the card as inducement to make her try on an outfit she didn't particularly care for, Brennan was a little in awe of this card and wondering where she could get one of her own. By the fifth time Angela used it on her, Brennan had decided she was going to burn the damned thing just as soon as she figured out where Angela kept it. During a late lunch, she had casually asked Angela to see the much touted card, desperately wanting to know where these cards were issued. It was an act of sheer self preservation, she needed a card to cancel out Angela's more outrageous demands. Angela had almost fallen out of her chair laughing but she had failed to produce the card so Brennan still had no idea where to obtain one of the obviously valuable cards for herself. Making a mental note to confer with Booth about it later, she followed Angela back into shopping hell with a resigned sigh.

By the time they entered what she estimated had to be the thousandth boutique of the day, Brennan was tired and more than a little concerned that she was going to let her friend down in the advice department. She truly wanted to help Angela out and had actually been very concerned about some of the choices her friend was making lately but every time she had tried to talk to Angela this seemingly endless afternoon, Angela had changed the subject and led her into another store to try on yet another absolutely indecent outfit for tonight. At the moment, Brennan was just about frustrated enough to grab the first halfway appropriate clothing she saw and get this night over with so she could go home to Booth. Luckily, it didn't come down to that.

At one of the first stores they had gone into, Angela had chosen a dress for herself. It was a simple, sleeveless silver sheath that hugged her slender body and showed it to advantage, stopping just above her knees. She had added silver heels with no hose and several chunky bracelets on each wrist, keeping the look simple and just a little funky and she looked great. She had attempted to talk Brennan into one revealing outfit after another until Brennan had finally threatened to back out of tonight if Angela didn't tone it down. Angela had pouted but she had toned it down or, at least, she had pretended to and stopped pushing the obvious, too much skin showing for Brennan to be comfortable with outfits and gone for something a little less revealing. And a hell of a lot more sexy.

Angela had known the instant she spotted the two piece outfit, it would be perfect for Brennan and for tonight. She had been busily plotting how to get her friend to try it on when, to her surprise, Brennan had spotted it and moved toward the display, eyeing the ensemble consideringly. "Do you like this one, Bren?" Angela had asked, just managing to keep the hopeful glee out of her voice.

"I really like the boots," Brennan had responded, picking up the knee high black boots. Turning them over in her hands, she admired the soft, supple feel of the leather. She would have preferred a wedge heel rather than the three inch stilettos but she had already fallen in love with the boots and she could live with the heels.

"Here, go try it on," Angela urged, gathering the outfit that had been on display with the boots and urging Brennan toward the dressing room. Her attention still on the black boots, Brennan had complied without Angela having to use the best friend card.

"I don't know about this, Ange," Brennan said doubtfully several minutes later, still in the dressing room.

"What do you mean?" queried Angela, impatiently waiting for Brennan to step through the doorway, certain the outfit would be perfect.

"It just seems like it might be a little too much," Brennan responded.

"Bren, are you going to come out and let me see?" Angela asked in exasperation. Brennan didn't answer but she did step through the door of the dressing room several seconds later.

"Do you see what I mean?" she asked innocently, twirling around for Angela to get the full effect.

"Oh my God," breathed Angela, relieved that Brennan had been so preoccupied looking at herself in the full length mirror that she hadn't heard the exclamation. On the mannequin she had known the outfit had possibilities but when it was placed on a body like Brennan's, it was absolutely stunning. The shirt was a copy of a man's dress shirt, slightly large so it was almost falling off one shoulder or the other and showing just a hint of cleavage at any given time. The sleeves appeared to be rolled up several times to halfway up Brennan's forearms. Angela knew there had been a skirt with the outfit but she couldn't see it at the moment because the tails of the shirt extended to almost mid thigh making it look like Brennan was dressed in only a man's dress shirt and those sexy boots. The boots that they had both judged would come to below the knee actually extended to just above the knee so that only a few inches of toned thighs were actually visible. The rest of Brennan's legs were encased in soft, leather making them look very long and slender and ending in those very sexy heels. Brennan's hair was all rumpled and tousled from changing clothes and Angela knew that no red blooded man would be able to look at the anthropologist in this outfit and not like what he saw. Seeley Booth wasn't going to know what hit him tonight, she thought with a grin.

"What's wrong with it? I think you look great," Angela offered honestly.

"I can't get the belt," Brennan told her, turning and holding out the wide black belt. Angela took the belt and quickly cinched it around Brennan's waist, pulling the shirt out above it just enough to show the hem of the black skirt that ended mid thigh and playfully unbuttoning another button, revealing a great deal of cleavage. "You don't think it's too much?" Brennan asked chewing on her bottom lip. She really liked the look and knew that Booth would enjoy the outfit but she wasn't sure about wearing it out to a club for a girl's night out. Since she was with Booth, she really wasn't all that comfortable drawing that kind of interest.

"It's perfect, Bren," Angela assured her sincerely.

"You don't think it's too…?" Brennan broke off unable to find the exact word she was searching for but Angela could almost read her mind about this.

"Slutty?" Angela supplied the word with a raised brow and laughed when Brennan nodded. "Sweetie, that get up is sexy as hell but it isn't even in the ballpark of slutty. Trust me on this one, Bren," Angela urged, walking around Brennan to get the full effect again.

Brennan was still a little undecided when she stepped back into the dressing room and started changing back into her clothes. Hearing her phone ping that she had a message waiting, she grabbed her phone and smiled at the text from Booth.

_Booth: Hey, gorgeous. Just wondered if Angela is still torturing you or if you had killed her already._

_Brennan: Don't be ridiculous, Booth. It would take much more planning and privacy than are currently available to successfully kill Angela and eliminate the evidence. Although I honestly think a case could be made for a crime of passion or self defense if you saw the inappropriate clothing she seems determined for me to wear tonight._ Booth laughed out loud at her response.

_Booth: Okay, then, just don't let her talk you into anything too sexy for tonight. I don't like the idea of anyone but me seeing you in the kind of things she likes to dress you in. _Brennan grinned before posting her reply.

_Brennan: Too late. Want a preview before you head out with the guys?_ Booth groaned then replied.

_Booth: I would love one but I have a meeting and then I'm supposed to meet Hodgins and Sweets at Club One._

"Ange, where are we going tonight?" Brennan called out, knowing the name of the club Booth had mentioned sounded familiar.

"Club One," Angela called back, wandering around randomly picking up and looking at objects, waiting on Brennan to finish changing.

_Brennan: That's where we're going, too._

_Booth: Now that is good news, Baby. I already miss you and I didn't even want to think about what Angela could drag you into tonight. Since we're going to the same place I can keep an eye on you two. If we're lucky we might even get in a dance or two. _

_Brennan: How? I'm going to be advising Angela and you're going to be comforting Sweets._

_Booth: Oh, come on, Bones. Put your thinking cap on._

_Brennan: I don't know what that means._

_Booth: LOL. It means that you are a genius and I am an FBI agent. Surely between the two of us, we can come up with a plan to sneak away from our respective parties and steal a few minutes alone._

_Brennan: Got it. I will endeavor to formulate an adequate plan in the appropriate time frame. _

_Booth: Me, too. On second thought, buy the sexiest outfit you can find and wear it for me tonight. _Brennan grinned. She could definitely do that_. _

_Brennan: Okay. See you soon. _

_Booth: See you soon. _

"I've changed my mind, Ange. I'll take this outfit. In fact, I think we need to make a stop at Victoria's Secret to complete our ensembles." Brennan told her stunned friend, not even trying to hide the wicked glint in her eyes. Booth had told her to wear the sexiest outfit she could find tonight and she was very, very good at following instructions.

Angela had no idea what had changed Brennan's mind and didn't particularly care. She just wanted to take full advantage of this newly accommodating mood. "All righty then, let's pay for this and get this show on the road," she grinned, linking arms with Brennan and pulling her toward the front of the store.

"This place is great, Bren." Angela threw Brennan a laughing look at the disbelieving snort Brennan couldn't stop from escaping as they pushed their way through the teeming mass of humanity just inside the entrance of the newly opened club. Brennan looked around and had her doubts about the validity of Angela's claim. The artist had been oddly insistent that this club was the only place they could possibly talk tonight and had been singing its praises all afternoon raising Brennan's interest in the place and making her wonder just exactly what was going on with Angela to make her act this way. If it hadn't been for her knowing that Booth was going to be here tonight, Brennan would have been very detailed and vocal in negating Angela's claims, citing a quieter more subdued environment as more conducive to one on one communication. But as things stood, it suited her for them to be here tonight just as much as it apparently did Angela. Giving Brennan one last assessing and approving look, Angela grabbed her hand and pulled her through the milling crowd surrounding the bar, squeezing in and quickly ordering drinks for them both. Then Angela turned and surveyed the crowd as if she was looking for someone in particular.

"Who are you looking for, Ange?" Brennan asked, surreptitiously looking around but not spotting Booth.

"I thought Cam was going to meet us here," Angela answered absently, her gaze roving over the other patrons of the large club. Brennan was surprised but not unduly upset by that news. She didn't think she and Cam were ever going to be best friends but Brennan's antipathy against the other woman had pretty much played itself out. She wasn't really angry with her anymore, she just didn't trust her. "Well, well, well would you look at that," Angela drawled, attempting to simulate surprise but in actually only sounding very satisfied as she spotted her prey for the night.

"What?" Brennan asked, pulled out of her reverie by the excitement in Angela's voice.

"Look at what the cat dragged in," Angela said with a wide grin, nodding toward the table where Hodgins, Sweets and Booth sat.

"What cat?" Brennan started and her eyes raked the floor in confusion as if she was, indeed, looking for either the cat or what it had dragged in. "Angela, I'm fairly certain it is against health department guidelines for animals to be in here," she cautioned her friend helpfully.

"Oh for God's sake," muttered Angela, rolling her eyes at Brennan's literal interpretation of her words. "It's not a real cat, Bren. It's just a saying," she acknowledged and hastened to explain before Brennan could even get the words out to ask. "It means that I see someone I know," Angela explained.

"Oh. Who?" Brennan asked politely.

"The guys," Angela grinned.

"Which guys?" Brennan asked as nonchalantly as possible. She was fairly certain who Angela had spotted but she needed to appear surprised to see them. She didn't want Angela wondering how she had known the men would be there in advance.

"Those guys right over there, Sweetie," Angela grinned, turning Brennan by the shoulders so that the men in question were directly in her line of sight, watching Brennan's face closely to see how she reacted to seeing Booth.

Feeling eyes on her, Brennan raised her eyes and met hot, chocolate brown eyes sliding approvingly over her face and body. "Oh," she murmured, quickly dropping her gaze and taking a sip of her drink so that Angela couldn't see how she was flushing from Booth's heated perusal. She absently noted that there were several extra chairs at the table the men had claimed and it was obvious they were either expecting more people to join them or were just selfishly taking up a lot more space than necessary for their party.

Sighing in abject disappointment from Brennan's non reaction to Booth's presence, Angela picked up her drink, grabbed Brennan's hand and tugged her toward the men's table, eager to get this show on the road. She wanted one Seeley Booth to get an up close and personal look at Brennan and she dared him not to like what he saw.

Booth had been held captive in this noisy club with Hodgins and Sweets for almost an hour and it was turning into one of the weirdest men's night out of his experience. He had been under the impression that Sweets was heartbroken over his break up with Daisy and required moral support from him and Hodgins. Booth had been ready to supply that support and was even ready to supply any advice that was requested because he felt he was in a unique position to do so because of his own involvement with Brennan. By no stretch of the imagination could either Brennan or Daisy Wicks be considered normal and relationships with them presented rather unusual challenges that most men couldn't even begin to imagine. Prepared to offer his assistance, Booth was surprised when Sweets started stuttering and blushing and quickly changing the subject whenever Daisy was mentioned. Booth found that an exceedingly odd reaction considering Sweets' profession and the emphasis he placed on talking your feelings to death. He put it down to the kid being embarrassed that he had been dumped and held his tongue, vowing to just listen to the kid if he did decide he wanted to talk at some point.

He had no such explanation for Hodgins even more squirrely than usual behavior. Booth had arrived at the club to find Hodgins and Sweets occupying a large booth in the corner that was obviously meant for occupancy by more than three people. The two men had their heads together, whispering furtively when Booth approached the table. "Are we expecting someone else, Hodgins?" Booth asked with a raised brow, pausing beside the table. His eyes narrowed as both men's heads jerked up and they both tried so hard to look innocent that they only succeeded in looking guilty as hell.

"Um, no, not really," Hodgins stuttered in his nervousness at Booth's sudden appearance, hoping the FBI agent hadn't overheard his conversation with Sweets. For some reason, Hodgins was nervous about what they were doing tonight and had a feeling that if things went badly, it would be blamed on him. He was determined not to let that happen and had been trying to convince Sweets that they needed to take this opportunity to gain any intel they could about the woman in Booth's life. That way, if tonight didn't work out, they would still have something to go on to plan their next attack. Sweets had been arguing that no way could Hodgins interrogate Booth without his noticing. It was now a point of pride with Hodgins to prove the younger man wrong. Noting that Booth was looking at him oddly, Hodgins shook off his nervousness and gave Booth another innocent look. "But you never know who you might run into, Booth," Hodgins replied smoothly. So smoothly that Booth immediately knew that something was up.

That impression was only reinforced by the fact that the bug man seemed to be fixated on Booth's personal life and asked what he probably thought was diplomatic question after question to ascertain the status of his love life. For a couple of minutes, Booth had thought that the two had discovered his relationship with Brennan and were trying to get him to admit it but the way they were digging for information on the identity of the woman soon put paid to that fear. Despite Hodgins' belief in his abilities to unobtrusively ferret out information, Booth found nothing discreet about the questions coming his way from Hodgins and he really began to get irritated when Sweets joined in. Booth couldn't imagine why they considered his love life any of their business and he had no intention of sharing, especially when he felt like they were playing him for some ulterior motive. The bottom line was he wasn't interested in playing their games.

"I thought we were here tonight to help you get over a broken heart, Sweets," he said, meeting their eyes squarely, the irritation in his voice making both men flinch. "But you seem to be handling the break up fine and I have no desire to discuss my personal life so I think I'll just be going." His voice made it clear he'd had enough and he slid toward the edge of the seat.

"No," burst out Sweets and Hodgins simultaneously, reaching out and grasping each of Booth's forearms as if they could physically tether him to his seat. One look at their hands on his arms and a raised brow had them quickly releasing their grips and looking at each other in somewhat of a panic. Booth had no idea what the hell was up with Hodgins and Sweets but he needed some kind of explanation or he was out of here and both men could clearly see that. Hodgins ignored the _I told you so _look that Sweets was drilling him with and frantically sought some way to keep him here until Angela and Brennan arrived.

"I'm sorry, Booth," Hodgins finally sighed, deciding to play on Booth's compassion. Yes, he knew that was a low move but it really was for Booth's own good, Hodgins justified. Besides, Angela would kill him if she arrived with Brennan looking smoking hot and Booth wasn't here. After a surreptitious glance toward the entrance of the club, Hodgins turned back to Booth to see the other man was impatiently waiting for his explanation and Hodgins knew it had better be good. "I haven't been able to move past my break up with Angela," he began and saw Booth relax back against the seat, clearly hearing the honesty in those words and waiting for him to continue. "I guess I was just trying to live vicariously through you," he injected a note of humor in his voice but saw that Booth had stiffened again and obviously knew Hodgins was lying about that part. Booth slid toward the edge of the seat without a word. "Wait," Hodgins said, his eyes dropping to his beer bottle and his fingers starting to pick at the label. "The truth," he almost whispered, "is that I need to know that things work out for somebody. It's the only thing that gives me hope for myself anymore."

Booth and Sweets both heard the truth and pain in those words and both reached out to a friend in need. Sweets laid a comforting hand on Hodgins forearm and Hodgins actually took comfort from it.

"You can tell us anything," Sweets assured him quietly. Hodgins nodded and continued to pick at the now peeling label on his beer bottle, a little embarrassed about laying his heart bare like he had.

"I'm sorry, man," Booth replied gently, not knowing what else to say. His heart went out to the other man, his suspicions about the ulterior motives for the night alleviated, at least for the moment. "I'm always here if you need to talk," he added sincerely.

"Maybe," Hodgins said, glancing up with a self deprecating smile lifting his lips. "If we ever turn into girls," he finished with a genuine grin. Booth wasn't fooled for a minute, he knew exactly what it felt like to think you couldn't have the thing that you wanted most in the world and he could see the gratitude for the offer to lend his ear in Hodgins' eyes.

"It is not an exclusively feminine trait to talk about your feelings," Sweets inserted, sounding irritated, "and it would probably make you feel better to discuss yours in more depth," he told Hodgins, his professional demeanor firmly in place.

"Leave it alone, Sweets," Booth said softly, knowing from experience that Hodgins would talk about it when he was ready and to the person of his choosing. Hodgins shot him a grateful look for deflecting Sweets and Booth nodded. Unfortunately, Sweets was made of sterner stuff than that and he opened his mouth to offer further assistance. Hodgins glanced around quickly, hoping to spot something to take the attention from himself. He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face as he spotted the perfect thing, the very reason they were here tonight.

Booth was watching the entrance to the club closely and knew the instant Brennan walked in. He caught just a glimpse of her face as she and Angela came through the entrance and his eyes locked on her until they approached the bar and he could see her more clearly. His breath caught in his throat and his hand tightened around his highball glass as his eyes slowly raked over her tousled auburn hair to the collar of the white shirt that was falling off of her left shoulder and leaving the soft, silky skin unmarred by a bra strap open to his caressing gaze. His breathing became almost ragged and he barely bit back a groan as his eyes followed the graceful arch of her neck to the opened collar of the shirt and the creamy swell of her breasts just barely visible there.

_God, she had certainly taken him at his word and found one of the sexiest outfits she possibly could for tonight, he thought, and all he had actually seen so far was the shirt but it was enough. _He had what she claimed was a bad habit of starting to relieve her of her clothes as soon as the door to his or her apartment closed behind them. Instead of wandering around to find her own clothes after they made love for the first time of the evening, she had started taking custody of his dress shirts to wear usually with only one button between her breasts done up. It never failed to make him hot and hard to just catch a glimpse of her all tousled and tumbled, dressed only in his shirt. Even though the shirt she was currently wearing wasn't his, this was no exception. He shifted in his seat to relieve the pressure on his erection but his eyes never left her. His gut clenched and his whole body tightened as the crowd parted and he got his first unobstructed view of her entire outfit. His hungry eyes followed the shirt down her body and saw the barely visible skirt then heated even more as they saw those long, slender legs wrapped in black leather that ended in heels that sure weren't made for walking. He actually shuddered at the vision of her dressed only in those boots with her mile long legs wrapped around his waist that invaded his head. Both of his hands clenched into fists as he fought the urge to get up, go to her and drag her out of here for some very pleasurable alone time.

"Angela and Brennan just walked in," Hodgins said, trying and failing miserably to appear surprised, unable to drag his eyes away from Angela to assess Booth's reaction to Brennan. Hodgins voice gave Booth the strength to pull his eyes away from Brennan and he was looking at his drink when Hodgins finally focused on his face. Luckily for Booth, Sweets had been fiddling with his cell phone and had also missed his reaction to his partner.

"Oh, really?" asked Booth after clearing his throat a couple of times and taking a sip of his drink, thankful his hand was steady. "Where?"

Hodgins nodded toward the bar and sat back with his arms crossed over his chest waiting for Booth to be wowed by Brennan's very spectacular appearance. He was in for a disappointment. From Booth anyway. Booth's eyes barely flicked toward the duo then landed back on his drink. Sweets glanced in the direction of the bar and did a double take.

"Whoa," he breathed, almost choking on his beer as his eyes locked on the two women in question. "They look really hot tonight. I mean," he backpedaled quickly as he became the recipient of two almost identical glares of outrage from Hodgins and Booth, "they look very nice tonight." Amusement became his primary emotion as Sweets took in the way the two men were glaring at him over his relatively innocent comment. On Booth's part, this was a good sign that they were headed in the right direction with tonight because he was obviously territorial and jealous of the anthropologist. Sweets was saved from having to consider what the same reaction said about Hodgins by the arrival of two of the hottest women in the club at their table.

"Hi, guys," Angela grinned. "Are you expecting someone or may we join you?" she asked, indicating the empty space in the booth.

Hidden behind Angela's back, Brennan saw that Hodgins and Sweets' attentions were focused on the artist. Her gaze flicked back to Booth and she gave him a sultry, flirty smile and her tongue flicked out to trace over her bottom lip, his eyes following every movement of her tongue and his eyes darkening to black.

"We would be pleased to have your delightful company," Hodgins smiled charmingly and gestured toward the empty booth space. Angela grinned at him and quickly assessed the seating arrangement. Sweets and Hodgins took up one of the bench seats leaving Booth alone on his side of the table. With a conspiratorial grin at Hodgins and Sweets, Angela grabbed a startled Brennan by the arm and practically shoved her onto the seat beside Booth, moving in after her and crowding her so much and so quickly that she ended up sprawled face down across a surprised Booth's lap.

"Sorry," Brennan offered, her hand moving to one of his hard thighs for leverage enough to lift herself off of him. Booth's jaw clenched to hold back a moan as her breasts flattened against his thighs and her hand slipped from his thigh and skimmed his erection before she managed to find a secure purchase and started to sit up.

"No problem," he returned, managing to unclench his jaw enough to answer. "Here let me help you," he offered solicitously, his big hands moving under her arms and lifting her easily, keeping her back to the others. Knowing the touching hadn't been an accident, he held her eyes, both thumbs sliding over her distended nipples just once. Her eyes fluttered shut and she chewed on her bottom lip to hold back a moan and Booth knew he had to take his hands off of her immediately or he was going to devour her right here in front of the squint squad. Reluctantly releasing her, he determined to be good for the rest of the night. His vow lasted less than a minute.

"You look beautiful," Booth whispered almost in Brennan's ear under the guise of helping her get more comfortably situated against his side. "I really like the boots," he growled softly, unable to stop his nose nuzzling against her ear. Brennan stiffened and he just then realized what he had done, his startled eyes flying to meet hers. They both turned to the others sure that they had just outed their relationship. To their shock, the other three seemed to see nothing unusual in the partner's actions and were chatting companionably while waiting for Booth and Brennan to join the conversation.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" Angela asked, ducking her head to hide her satisfied smile as Booth and Brennan shared a puzzled look at their friends' lack of perception. _God, they had been all over each other and the three people seated within five feet of them hadn't even noticed._ _What was wrong with this picture their eyes asked each other? _Booth shrugged philosophically, having no clue how a squint's mind worked and turned his attention to the conversation.

"We didn't expect to see you here," a wide eyed Sweets assured Angela, earning himself a swift kick under the table from Hodgins, an eye roll from Angela and a strange look from Booth.

Brennan's eyes narrowed as she gazed thoughtfully at her friends. Brennan was all too familiar with how a genius mind worked and it wasn't like Hodgins to miss out on things. It was most especially not like Sweets to not ask for an explanation of every look and touch between her and Booth. Brennan had to admit that she had no idea how Angela's mind worked but she knew her friend was like a bloodhound, able to sniff out even the trace of a romance and she couldn't imagine that Angela would be able to keep quiet about it if she had noticed anything. _So how had all three not even noticed the way she and Booth were touching each other? Was it possible that they had been touching that way without even realizing it so long that the others had grown accustomed to seeing it and no longer noted it as unusual?_ It was possible but Brennan didn't really buy it, she and Booth had been very careful not to let their personal relationship bleed over into their professional one.

Admittedly, they had pushed it until their scheduled disagreements became necessary to throw everyone off their track but that didn't explain what had just happened or, rather, what hadn't happened. She knew she should just be happy they hadn't noticed and let it go but found that she couldn't do that until her innate need to know exactly what was going on was met. _But how could she figure it out? _She could ask Booth but his face had told her he had no idea what was going on either so that was no help. _How did she figure anything out?_ her brain asked and the proverbial light bulb went off. Experimentation, of course. It took her whirling brain less than two minutes to come up with acceptable parameters for her experiment. She did have several seconds of doubt about whether to consult Booth before enacting this experiment but her scientific mind with its zeal to understand everything around her overrode her caution and she decided that he would understand. After all, all knowledge was good.


	16. Chapter 16

**I apologize to everyone for the delay in replying to your reviews. I do read and appreciate each and every one and I promise you will be hearing from me. I hope you enjoy the new chapter and I'm working on smut for the next one so please review and keep Musie happy. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Intimately familiar with all aspects of the process of experimentation, Brennan knew that she had to establish a baseline of facts before the information she obtained from the actual experiment would be at all useful to her. Fact #1: Her friends and colleagues who frequently showed an almost disturbing amount of interest in hers and Booth's relationship hadn't reacted when they had practically attacked each other right in front of them. To Brennan's mind, that fact raised a multitude of questions, the main one being why? Had they truly not noticed or had they noticed but chosen not to react and if so, why would they do that?

Fact #2: She found it a little strange that despite Angela's assurances that she needed her best friend's advice on a personal matter, she had avoided discussions of a personal nature all day and she had been strangely insistent that Brennan dress in a seductive manner for their night out.

Fact #3: Now that facts #1 and #2 had been brought to her attention, she was finding it a little coincidental that they had all wound up at the same place tonight, especially considering how vocally Angela had recommended this place. She had learned from Booth that all coincidences were suspect especially when they, as she was sure he would assure her about this situation, stank to high heaven.

Fact #4: Despite her inability to read people, something about her friends seemed a little off tonight. Their conversation and joviality seemed a little forced to her and they seemed fidgety and uncomfortable. Now she could somewhat understand Sweets acting a little oddly considering his breakup with Ms. Wicks but what would account for Angela's and Hodgins' behavior?

Brennan was drawn from her reverie by Angela poking her rather sharply in the arm. Blinking, she realized that Angela had been trying to get her attention for some time. Looking around, she saw everyone looking at her in an affectionately exasperated way that she was used to seeing in the lab and told herself that she was going to have to be a lot more observant for her experiment to yield any results. And she had enough of a baseline established to begin those experiments immediately. "What?" she asked Angela rather sheepishly and everyone but Booth laughed.

"Do you want some nachos?" Angela asked laughingly. Brennan nodded and Angela turned to the waitress standing beside their table and she and Hodgins started rattling off drink and snack orders for the group. Sweets was looking at his cell phone with a deep frown as if he was willing it to ring but it remained silent.

"Are you okay?" Booth used everyone's distraction to lean down and ask, his voice heavy with concern.

"I'm fine," she assured him, allowing her body to relax and lean against his a little more heavily. He shifted automatically to accommodate her and smiled down into her tilted face. Her hand automatically moved to his thigh and began to smooth up and down, although their companions couldn't see that because of the table. Brennan peeked at her companions out of the corner of her eye and saw, somewhat to her disappointment, that Sweets was studiously looking at his phone. Hodgins and Angela were embroiled in a discussion about some celebrity Brennan had never heard of. Okay, leaning against Booth had been pretty subtle so maybe she shouldn't have expected them to notice. Time to move on.

Leaning forward, Brennan picked up her glass and took a long sip of her drink and snuggled even closer to Booth when she sat back, catching his raised eyebrow and his grin out of the corner of her eye. Booth didn't know what the hell she was up to but he was certain it was something and the playful glint in her eye didn't bode well for him. Brennan loved to tease him. Granted, it wasn't usually in front of their friends but he got the feeling she was suspending those rules for tonight and he was in for a hard time. No pun intended. He caught the hand that was stroking the inside of his thigh under one of his own and gave his head a little shake as he picked up his own drink and took a long draw, already feeling the need to cool down.

"Sweets, what the hell is up with you and that phone?" asked Booth, feeling the need to distract attention from himself and how hot Brennan was getting him without even trying.

"Oh, I was just kind of waiting on a call," Sweets answered, his eyes moving over Booth and Brennan and noting how closely they were sitting and quickly moving away to hide his glee. Angela glanced at the couple out of the corner of her eye and Hodgins gave a barely perceptible nod of his head and they both grinned like fools not believing how easy it had been to get the two together tonight.

"I thought Cam was joining us, Ange?" Brennan asked, looking around as if she was looking for the pathologist. In reality, she was studying the other three for any hint that they had noticed her actions. Sadly, they seemed oblivious.

"I'm sure she'll be here whenever she can," Angela answered, with a little pat to Brennan's hand.

Twenty minutes and three drinks later, after multiple touches, looks and snuggles that had her longing to drag Booth off into a dark corner somewhere, Brennan was beginning to wonder if she shouldn't reevaluate Angela and Hodgins suitability to work on the cases they did considering their inattention to detail. If she got any closer to Booth, she would be sitting in his freaking lap and while she would immensely enjoy that, she felt that would be impossible to miss so it wasn't really an accurate measure of their perception so that was out. _What the hell was she going to have to do to get a reaction out of them?_

She might be failing with the other three but she sure as hell had gotten a reaction out of Booth. He was so stirred up he could barely sit still. Every subtle little brush of her hand on his arm, the touch of her thigh against his, the way she was so close that he could inhale her scent with every breath and her hair caught on his shirt when she turned her head had all combined to make him grit his teeth to fight the urge to pull her fully into his arms and kiss that pouting mouth.

It hadn't taken him all that long to figure out that she was trying to get a reaction out of their companions and he had joined the game. If she wasn't worried about them touching in front of the squints, then why should he be? He tried to keep the touches much more impersonal than he wanted them to be, brushing her hair away from her face, putting his arm around her shoulders but he had found his hand involuntarily dropping to her thigh and lightly rubbing the smooth flesh exposed between her short skirt and the top of her boots. He was now aching to get her out of here and take her home but she had him so hot that he couldn't even stand up without embarrassing them both and he had no idea how to put a stop to it. Or even if he wanted to. It didn't help that the slight hitch in her breathing and the color of her eyes told him she was just as turned on as he was.

It also hadn't taken him long to realize that the other three smothered smiles every time he and Brennan touched each other. When he removed his arm from around her shoulders just to see what they would do, she had thought he wanted more room and slid down the bench seat toward Angela. They had, almost as a unit, frowned and looked very disapproving. Reaching out, he had pulled Brennan back against him and received smiles and nods of approval all around. Eyes narrowing, he had instantly recognized that the squints were trying to push him and Brennan together and he had surprisingly mixed feelings about that.

He wasn't at all surprised that Angela wanted them together and he felt he understood Hodgins' reasons pretty well since the other man had shared his feelings earlier. It bothered him a little that Hodgins obviously thought he was involved with someone else but was pushing Brennan toward him with no regard for someone else's feelings but, overall, he thought that Angela and Hodgins just wanted him and Brennan to be happy. He was absolutely shocked that Sweets would approve such a move since the psychologist had been so doggedly vocal in his insistence that Booth wasn't in love with anyone following his surgery but there was no way he was misunderstanding the approval coming their way on that front. He just had no idea what had motivated the change of heart and until he did, he wasn't really comfortable letting Sweets in on their secret.

He was pulled out of his musings and almost choked on his drink when Brennan's hand landed back on his thigh, very high north of his knee and softly stroked his erection.

"Are you all right?" she asked, turning toward him and giving him the big, innocent eyes even while she continued to stroke him.

"Yeah," he coughed, grabbing her hand and removing it while he still had the willpower to do so. "I'm fine." He didn't think she had figured out what was going on with the squints yet but she was getting bolder and bolder in her actions and it wasn't going to be long before she did something that gave them away entirely. He had to talk to her before that happened. "Do you want to dance, Bones?" he asked a little desperately.

She blinked in surprise and glanced at his lap with a grin. "Sure," she said easily and glanced toward the dance floor as Angela accommodatingly scooted off the seat and walked around, nudging Hodgins to move over so she could sit with him and Sweets.

"There's Cam," Angela noted, glancing around absently. Suddenly she stiffened and her eyes widened, flitting to Sweets and then back toward the club entrance.

"What?" asked Brennan curiously, seeing Angela's change of expression.

"Daisy Wicks. And she looks pissed," Angela said softly, leaning toward Brennan to impart the information as if it was a secret. Of course the men overheard and everyone in the booth turned toward the entrance just as Cam walked up to the table, plopping down tiredly in the seat beside Brennan and blocking her and Booth's exit.

"What the hell is she doing here?" a rather panicked Hodgins hissed to Sweets.

"I don't know," Sweets hissed back.

Ignoring Cam's rather dramatic arrival, Brennan studied Daisy's face then turned back to Angela. "Yes, she does appear to be quite agitated. Perhaps she's still upset about the breakup with Sweets," she added helpfully, not noticing the way Sweets and Hodgins blanched and stared at her in open mouthed horror that she knew about the imaginary break up.

"Oh, she's more than upset. She's been ranting all afternoon at work," Cam sighed, reaching for Angela's drink and taking a big gulp. "Dammit, Sweets couldn't you have broken up with her over the weekend and given her a few days to calm down before I had to listen to her?" she grouched, giving him a glare.

"Who told her?" Sweets voice was so high that it was almost inaudible and if looks could kill, Hodgins would have been dead on the spot.

"Not me," the bug man protested.

"Who told who what?" Brennan asked in confusion. Booth, who had been following Brennan out of the seat was plastered to her back but his eyes were locked on Daisy Wicks who had spotted Sweets and was currently headed in their direction with a rather vengeful look in her eyes.

"Daisy's headed this way," he whispered in Brennan's ear, his hands on her back urging her forward. He could see a train wreck coming and he had no desire to be a casualty. "Move it, Cam. Bones and I are going to dance," he didn't bother with niceties.

"Oh, okay," Cam slid out of the booth, closely followed by Brennan and Booth. Booth grabbed Brennan's hand and pulled her toward the dance floor.

"But, Booth, the boy might need our support," she protested. Booth had seen enough women with that look on their face to know he and Brennan didn't want any part of this.

"Then we'll support the boy. Later," he promised. "Trust me, Bones, you don't want to get in the middle of this. Now, come on and dance with me, Baby," he cajoled with a sexy smile, lowering his voice to a growl that sent a shiver down her spine and she gave in following him onto the dance floor.

Cam watched them disappear onto the crowded dance floor with a soft smile and turned to Angela with a raised brow. "I take it tonight is going well?"

"Yeah, it would appear so," Angela agreed with a grin.

Cam's eyes widened as she looked at Sweets and Hodgins who had their heads so close together they were almost touching and were practically hissing at each other. Although she couldn't make out the words, they both appeared to be very upset. "What is wrong with you two?" she demanded after looking at Angela with a raised brow and receiving a shrug that indicated Angela had no idea.

"Who told Daisy?" demanded Sweets doggedly, glaring at Angela and Cam in turn.

"Who told Daisy about what?" Cam asked calmly. She'd had just about enough of upset people snapping at her today and was very close to releasing a little angst of her own.

"About us breaking up," Sweets hissed, his glare now turning to Hodgins who adroitly avoided his eyes. Cam and Angela looked at each other in confusion as the question made no sense whatsoever to them.

"What?" asked Angela, her brow furrowed. "I thought Daisy broke up with you," she turned and looked at Sweets suspiciously.

"That's not what Daisy said," Cam countered. "She was yelling about Sweets breaking up with her and not even having the balls to do it himself. Apparently, he had someone else tell her," Cam explained as Angela looked at her in question. Angela gasped in outrage and both women turned a condemning look in Sweets' direction.

"That's low, Sweets," hissed Angela and Cam nodded her agreement, continuing to sip Angela's drink.

"I didn't," Sweets protested feeling the need to pound his head against the nearest hard surface. Hodgins actually did bend down and bump his head against the table a couple of times hoping if he knocked himself out, this nightmare would be over by the time he came to but it hurt like hell so he gave up on that and simply buried his face in his crossed arms atop the table. No, he really didn't think hiding from the fallout would save him from having to face the wrath of at least one very pissed off woman but he wasn't above giving it a shot.

"You didn't have someone else break up with her for you?" Cam questioned, turning to monitor Daisy's progress across the room and noting the young woman had stopped at the bar. Whether it was for courage or for a drink to throw in Sweets' face she couldn't hazard a guess but it gave them time to get the whole story before Sweets died so she was good with that.

"I didn't break up with her at all," Sweets almost yelled in rising frustration, "Hodgins did!"

"You got Hodgins to do your dirty work for you?" Angela asked, her voice telling Sweets she thought that was shameful and patted Hodgins' back comfortingly at the same time.

"I did not get Hodgins to break up with Daisy. He did that all on his own," Sweets gritted through clenched teeth.

"That doesn't make any sense, Sweets," Cam countered. "Why would Hodgins break up with Daisy if you didn't ask him to? It's not like he was dating her," she laughed as if she had made a joke and reached for a nacho.

Hodgins' head shot up from the table and he looked at Sweets a little desperately, not even hearing Cam's comment. "It was an accident. Okay? It just kind of happened and I'm really sorry," he wheedled. He heard a gasp and glanced around, having no idea why Cam was looking at him in horror and Angela began to land open handed slaps on his arm and shoulder. "What the hell?" he demanded, turning toward Angela and trying to capture her hands in his without much success and damn, those sharp, little slaps stung.

"You should be ashamed of yourself, Jack Hodgins," she hissed, glaring at him in outrage, and dodging his grasping hands.

"What?" Hodgins practically yelled, covering his head with his arms in self defense.

"Dating Daisy behind Sweets' back. How could you do that?" Seeming to run out of steam, Angela's shoulders slumped.

"That was really low, Hodgins," Cam agreed with Angela. Hodgins cautiously uncovered his head, so surprised and disturbed by the conclusions that Cam and Angela had drawn that he had simply had no words to express the utter wrongness of what they were thinking. Sweets broke into near hysterical laughter.

"Yeah, Hodgins , that was low," Sweets chortled, an evil glint coming into his eyes.

"I don't blame you for breaking up with her," Angela told Sweets softly, reaching over Hodgins and patting Sweets on the shoulder. Ignoring the icy blasts of disapproval coming his way from the women, Hodgins met and held Sweets' eyes.

"Why didn't you call her?" Hodins growled, knowing he was completely in the wrong and not liking the feeling at all. Sweets looked at him in disbelief.

"Why would I?" demanded Sweets, his laughter vanishing and his anger and voice rising. "In case you've forgotten, Hodgins, DAISY AND I DID NOT BREAK UP. YOU LIED!! " Sweets yelled so loudly that everyone in their general vicinity turned to look at them. Hodgins felt awful for Sweets and Daisy. He knew he had messed things up with them big time and this entire situation was rapidly going from bad to worse. Unfortunately, he had no idea how to fix it.

"What?! Why would you do that?!" Angela gasped, looking at Hodgins in horror.

"That's exactly what I'd like to know," an angry female voice sounded behind Cam and four pairs of eyes tuned to meet those of a fuming Daisy Wicks.


	17. Chapter 17

**Okay, it's not really smut but I promise we will follow them home from the club and that should satisfy the smut monsters out there. LOL. Enjoy and please review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine but after the 100****th**** episode I really, really wish they were.**

Booth didn't stop at the edge of the dance floor but continued to pull on Brennan's hand and moved them into the middle of the writhing throng of people. And right out the other side of the dancers and toward a dark alcove he had noticed when he had gone to the bathroom earlier. When he was certain that they were deep enough within the shadows of the alcove they couldn't be seen by anyone, he turned and pulled her into his arms. Sighing in satisfaction, she wrapped her arms around his waist and melted against him. Booth's hand slid into her hair and tilted her face up toward his. Dipping his head, he took the kiss he had been craving since laying eyes on her tonight. It was long and slow and very, very thorough and he finally had to force himself to pull back before he got too involved.

"Hi," he whispered, his forehead resting against hers as he smiled into her eyes, his hands resting on her waist.

"Hi," she responded, returning the smile and moving even closer to him, her hands moving up and down his back. Reaching up, she nibbled on his lower lip and pulled him into a much hotter kiss than the one they had just shared. When their lips finally separated, her arms were wrapped around his neck, he had her backed against the wall and they were both breathing hard. He had actually pulled her in here to have a quiet word about what the squints were up to, not to make out, but he was fast losing sight of that as she leaned back in and traced his upper lip with the tip of her tongue.

With a low, husky groan, he opened his mouth over hers and kissed her ravenously, his tongue sliding into her mouth and rubbing seductively against hers. Lost to everything except the feel of her soft, eager mouth opening under his and her luscious body pressed between him and the wall, he was almost out of control when someone dropped a tray nearby and the sound of shattering glass pulled him back to reality. Reluctantly removing his shaking hands from her body, he gentled the kiss and pulled back. With a whimper of protest, she tightened her arms around his neck and her mouth followed his, her leg sliding up the back of his and pulling his aching hard on into direct contact with her hot, wet center. Holding onto his control by a thin thread, he tore his mouth away from hers, panting and almost shaking with need.

"God, Baby, you have to stop that," he shuddered against her, his hands fisted against the walls on either side of her head, struggling to find the willpower to keep them off of her. His brain told him they couldn't do this here but his body wasn't listening. It felt like he had been hard for days and his body was screaming for him to lift her short skirt, wrap her long legs around him and pound into her until they were both weak with satisfaction.

"Why?" she asked in a throaty purr, her teeth latching onto his earlobe and Booth shuddered, fighting to hold onto his reason before every thought not directly connected to his libido disappeared into the ether. But Brennan was really beginning to feel the effects of the three Long Island Iced Teas she had consumed and she didn't want to stop. Her body ached and throbbed in ways that only Booth could satisfy and the alcohol had loosened her inhibitions and her willpower just enough for her not to care where they were. Her tongue flicking into his ear told him so.

"Bones, you have to behave," he moaned, unable to find the strength to actually pull away from her tormenting mouth and hands. Momentarily distracted by the almost pleading note in his voice, Brennan raised her head and smoky blue eyes met black ones, both glittering and dilated with desire.

"Do you really want me to stop, Booth?" she teased with a sultry smile, already knowing the answer. Her hands moved from his back to his chest and her nails lightly scraped over the hard muscles covered by his shirt and landed on his belt buckle, immediately going to work on opening it. Her body felt like it was on fire and her entire focus was on relieving the ache between her thighs that was increasing by the second.

_Was she freaking kidding him? Did her want her to stop? Hell no, he didn't want her to stop._ He didn't ever want her to stop but if he didn't somehow find the control to calm them both down, the squints weren't going to be the only ones finding out about them when they were arrested for public indecency. And he was pretty damned sure their respective bosses would frown on them having sex in public but that was going to be exactly what happened if he didn't stop her soon. Groaning, Booth grabbed her hands and pressed them against the wall over her head, his fingers tangling with hers. With a gasp of excitement, Brennan arched against him, her body plastered to his from shoulder to groin and he knew he was in serious trouble here. Dropping his head to her shoulder, he fought for control and frantically reminded himself of where they were.

"Bones, baby, please stop it," he pleaded as her body writhed against his, her peaked nipples burying themselves against his chest and her center grazing his erection with every undulation of her hips.

"I don't want to stop, Booth," she whined. "You don't want me to stop, either," she taunted, deliberately twisting her hips against his.

"God, no, I don't want you to stop," he growled, deliberately leaning enough of his weight against her to hold her still. It didn't really help, considering that she was now pressed against him so tightly that he could feel her with every cell of his body. "I want to yank up your skirt and pound into you until you scream for mercy," he gritted against her ear and the way her body shuddered and jerked against him told him she wanted the same thing. Whimpering, her head turned and her mouth sought his. "We can't do this here, baby," he groaned, knowing that if her mouth connected with his again, he was toast. Resting his forehead against hers, he tried to steady his breathing and waited for her to open her eyes and look at him.

"Why?" she whined, opening confused, blue eyes to look at him. "You usually don't tell me to behave myself, Booth," she accused, not understanding the problem and not really caring what his issue was with where they were. She just wanted Booth to stop talking so they could get back to what they were doing but the look of resolve on his face told her that wasn't going to happen and she wasn't a happy camper to be left high and dry as it were. Her eyes narrowed as she glared at him.

"We don't usually get this carried away in public, Bones," he soothed, almost sighing in relief that she was getting angry. Anger he could handle in a public setting much more easily than the passion that had been raging between them just seconds before. He couldn't hold back a grin at the disgruntled look she sent him, then laughed out loud when her bottom lip protruded slightly. Bones rarely pouted but, God, she was gorgeous and completely adorable when she did. Of course, she would kick his ass if he ever told her that so he kept it to himself. "What about if I give you an incentive to behave yourself?" he cajoled, nuzzling his nose against hers.

"What?" she asked suspiciously.

"If you behave yourself now, I will not only encourage you to be bad when we get home, I will insist on it." Her eyes narrowed even further as she considered the offer and he sweetened the pot. "And I'll tell you what our dear friends are up to," he whispered against her ear.

"Do you know?" she gasped, her head jerking back so she could see his face.

"Yeah, I know," he assured her.

"Deal," she said instantly. Now that she had calmed down a little, she realized Booth had been right to put a stop to things when he had. Plus, she was not only going to find out what everyone except her seemed to know but then she was going to take Booth home and show him just how bad she could be. She could definitely live with that. "What are they doing?" she demanded, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

"They are trying to get us together," he answered, releasing her hands and stepping back so she wasn't crushed against the wall now that things were under control.

"Are you sure, Booth?" she asked, her voice full of doubt. "They didn't seem to be paying any attention at all to us. In fact, I doubt they would have noticed if we'd had sex on the table in front of them," she expanded, her voice once again disgruntled as she recalled her failed experiment. Booth burst out laughing.

"Trust me, baby, they would have noticed," he assured her, tipping her face up with a finger under her chin and dropping a quick, hard kiss on her lips.

"Why would they suddenly want us to be in a sexual relationship? Especially Sweets?" she didn't even try to deepen the kiss because she knew it wouldn't do her any good. Besides, she was extremely curious about something she hadn't been able to figure out on her own.

"That I don't know," Booth admitted. "We'll have to investigate further to find out." Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he slowly steered her toward the dance floor.

"What are we going to do?" she asked, wide eyed, willing to follow his lead.

"We're going to figure out why they suddenly feel the need for us to be together and react accordingly but that might take a little while. Right now we're going to dance, then we're going to go back, join the squints and mess with their minds," he grinned widely.

"Why?" Brennan asked, a little anxiously. She didn't understand the point of messing with people and she was very, very bad at it.

"Because they're messing with us," Booth explained patiently.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" she chewed on her lower lip in concern.

"No," he admitted, "but it will be fun," he cajoled, his thumb freeing her lip from her teeth before she drew blood. "Come on, baby," he encouraged, pulling her into his arms on the dance floor and guiding her into a slow sway that was appropriate for the music now playing. "You can do this," he assured her.

"What, exactly, do you want me to do?" she asked cautiously.

"I just want you to be Bones."

"I don't understand." His finger smoothed the furrow between her brows and he grinned.

"Neither will they, which is the whole point," he grinned. "We are going to rejoin our dear, interfering friends and be Booth and Bones at their professional best."

"I can do that," Brennan burst out brightly, pleased that he had given her an assignment she could accomplish. Booth laughed and hugged her to him at her happy expression.

"I know you can, baby, and it's going to confuse the hell out of them."

Brennan wasn't completely clear on why it would confuse their friends for her and Booth to act like they always did toward each other. As far as she could tell, Angela, Hodgins and Sweets had been oblivious to any increased intimacy between them earlier but she trusted Booth implicitly and would do as he asked. She would just consider it practice, liked she practiced her humor and her colloquialisms. As much as everybody else was doing it tonight, it appeared that messing with people was a life skill that they all considered essential and she was determined to learn all the interpersonal skills that she could. She might not be all that familiar with the process but she was a freaking genius and felt secure in her ability to figure it out. _How hard could it be?_ Her sense of humor suddenly kicked in and she almost giggled out loud as she realized that tonight she got to learn a new life skill then she got to take Booth home and rock his world_. A girl could certainly have a worse night,_ she decided, snuggling contentedly against her partner in crime with a smile of excited anticipation on her face.


	18. Chapter 18

**Hello, people. I know I'm late with the update but I actually have a good excuse this time. I broke my wrist in a car wreck on the way home from the beach Sunday. I hope you enjoy the chapter and please let me know either way. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

"Daisy," Sweets squeaked, swallowing hard and looking at his girlfriend with a mixture of embarrassment and desperation, knowing that she had been hurt by this whole fiasco and hating that with every fiber of his being.

"Lance," she returned sarcastically, raising the large frozen drink sporting an umbrella in her hand and taking a large enough drink to decrease the level in the glass by a couple of inches. She was trying to be aloof and show him she didn't care that he had been a big enough asshole to break up with her via her mentor but her anger and hurt shone in her eyes and it broke Sweets' heart.

"I can explain, Daisy," he assured her, holding her eyes and trying to will her to at least talk things over with him. Considering the circumstances, he knew that was a lot to ask but he was crazy about her and he didn't want to lose her over a misunderstanding.

"We should go and let these two talk," Cam suggested, sending silent messages to Angela with her eyes that they needed to vacate the premises before all Daisy's volatile emotions broke through and all hell broke loose. She had listened to the young woman rant and rave all afternoon and she wasn't anxious to hear any more about Sweets' shortcomings.

"No!" Daisy answered forcefully as Angela started to slide out of her seat. "I don't think I'm interested in what you have to say, Lance," she continued with a quiet dignity that was somehow worse than any amount of ranting and raving that she could have done. Drawing herself up to her full height and raising her chin proudly in the air, she turned to go.

Angela looked at the young woman and instantly read on her face the pain and humiliation she had suffered today at the hands of her current two supposedly adult, male companions for who the hell knew what purpose and her soft heart melted. Daisy might not be her favorite person but no one deserved to be treated like that. "Daisy," she said softly, reaching a sympathetic hand toward the young woman. Daisy ignored Angela's attempt to reach out and turned her back while Cam looked on helplessly and Sweets looked devastated.

Hodgins watched the exchange, his horror at what he had innocently caused growing by the second and suddenly, he had had enough. It was time to put a stop to this before the completely innocent Daisy suffered even more. Shoving Angela aside so swiftly that she barely managed to gain her feet instead of landing in a heap on the floor, he bounded up and grabbed the retreating woman's arm before she had taken more than two steps.

"Daisy, none of this is Sweets' fault. Please don't punish him for something I did. I did this," he stressed earnestly, holding her eyes and willing her to believe him. "I am completely responsible for this mess," he continued quietly. "Please sit down and let me explain and apologize," he pleaded. Daisy's eyes narrowed and Hodgins shivered as her gaze roving over his face to judge his sincerity strongly reminded him of Brennan when she was studying one of her skeletons, but he stood still under the scrutiny. After what he had caused, he could hardly protest that she was making him uncomfortable. It was the least of what he deserved.

Finally making up her mind, Daisy nodded jerkily and turned back toward the booth but when Hodgins tried to guide her into the seat beside Sweets, she jerked her arm away and slid into the one beside Cam, blocking Cam's escape.

"I should go," Cam offered but Daisy shook her head and Cam couldn't say no to the woman to woman look begging for support that Daisy shot her way. Cam sighed and scooted over. She so didn't need any more drama in her life right now. Her conscience had been kicking her ass for the last few months and Booth and Brennan's recent behavior had the entire lab in turmoil, stressing everyone out. Add to that the fact that she was learning to be a mother to a teenager and she was just about at the end of her rope. But she had committed herself to fixing things between the partners and she felt she had no choice but to stick with it until the end. No matter how painful the process might be or how bitter the end turned out. And she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that made her fear they had all had a hand in whatever the men had done to this young woman.

Hodgins slid back into the seat beside Sweets and noted that Angela was standing beside the table practically wringing her hands, vacillating between shooting him looks of reprimand with sending Daisy looks of sympathy. "Sit down, Ange," Hodgins encouraged, patting the seat beside him. Angela sat but she slid into the booth beside Daisy so that the three women were facing the two men. She and Cam scooted closer to the younger woman almost protectively and looked at him and Sweets with hard, angry eyes that demanded a damned good explanation quickly.

The waitress approached the table and unloaded a full tray of drinks. The people seated there each reached out and grabbed one, regardless of who had ordered what and each took a big gulp of their respective drinks. None of them were exactly comfortable in the situation they currently found themselves in.

"Keep them coming," requested Hodgins who had made arrangements to run a tab tonight and take care of it later. With a smile, a nod and a wink, the waitress was gone and they were left with an uncomfortable silence surrounding their table.

"I didn't break up with you, Daisy," Sweets burst out while Hodgins was getting his thoughts in order. He reached out to cover Daisy's hand with his and knew this wasn't going to be as easy as simply explaining things to her when she jerked her hand back. Cam and Angela both glared at Sweets and patted Daisy's shoulders comfortingly.

"Despite what you obviously think of me, Lance Sweets, I'm not stupid and I know that Dr. Brennan would never purposely lie to anyone. She had to have some basis for thinking that we had broken up. She would never make up something like that." Daisy's voice rang with conviction and Angela was touched that, despite Daisy's own pain, she was defending her hero first and foremost.

"Dr. Brennan told you?" gasped Sweets, feeling oddly betrayed by that fact. Daisy barely spared him a glance but nodded. "How did she find out?" demanded Sweets, turning on Hodgins.

"Hodgins, you need to tell us what you did," Angela insisted before Hodgins could give Sweets the angry response trembling on his lips. Taking a deep breath and reaching for calm, Hodgins complied.

"I told Booth that Daisy broke up with Sweets and we needed to take him out tonight to cheer him up," he stated baldly. Seeing the disapproving looks angled his way, he hurried on before the storm broke. "Booth doesn't gossip so I didn't even think about him saying anything to anybody else." All three women snorted and rolled their eyes in perfect tandem as if it was choreographed.

"What?" asked Sweets suspiciously after sharing a questioning look with Hodgins.

"You two are idiots," Angela assured him. Cam and Daisy nodded their agreement, each steadily chugging their drinks. Hodgins felt an anger that he had become all too familiar with lately rising within him at Angela's rather disdainful opinion of his intelligence. He was even more than a little offended on Sweets' behalf. She didn't give him a chance to respond. "Booth and Bren tell each other everything, Hodgins. How could you think they wouldn't talk about something as big as their surrogate son breaking up with his girlfriend?" she ended scathingly, slapping her palms down against the table in irritation. Sweets found the sting of betrayal lessened considerably at Angela's view of his relationship with the partners but his stomach was churning at the thought of not being able to fix things with Daisy.

"I have a better question," Cam inserted smoothly before Sweets could verbally reach out to his girlfriend. "Why the hell would you do something as stupid as lie to Booth in the first place?" Hodgins' hands curled into fists and his anger rose at Cam's comment but he managed to control himself with an enormous effort, knowing that he deserved every irate word coming his way.

"Why?" he responded to Cam's question but his angry, blue eyes met and held Angela's startled ones. "Why the hell do I do anything anymore?" he asked of himself more than anyone else. The women shared a baffled look at his question and his anger continued to increase and was joined by an almost staggering degree of pain as he looked at the woman that some little part of him was holding onto so tightly that he was willing to pull stunts that could destroy other people's lives without a second thought just to give her what she wanted.

He had made his feelings plain to her during the pregnancy scare, he had offered her everything he had, everything he was and she had turned him down by not answering. He had actually let that encourage him, telling himself that she would come around but no more. He couldn't believe the crap he had been willing to put up with just to be close to her but he was suddenly seeing his and her recent behavior clearly for the first time since he had found out she was dating Wendell and he didn't like what he saw. Not at all. He was disgusted with the both of them. Here they were trying to get Booth and Brennan to hook up and neither of them could even handle their own love life. As far as he was concerned, that had to stop. They had to come to some kind of understanding and stop tearing each other apart and the best way he knew to accomplish that was brutal honesty since subtle had been less than effective for him.

"You, Angela. I did it for you," he told her sharply and everyone else froze at the intensity in his voice, instinctively understanding that this was no longer about Sweets and Daisy.

"Me?" gasped Angela, appalled at the very idea. "I never asked you to lie to anyone, Hodgins," she shot back angrily, avoiding the passion in his eyes that she wasn't ready to deal with.

"You asked me to get Booth here tonight, Angela. And that's what I did," he countered angrily. Belatedly recalling that this wasn't about him and Angela and realizing this wasn't the time or place to pursue this, he turned to Daisy and his voice softened. "But she's right, Daisy. She didn't ask me to lie to Booth. Neither did Sweets. Booth wasn't cooperating with our plan and I panicked and said the first thing that popped into my mind. It was stupid and I'm truly sorry you got hurt in the process, Daisy," he apologized formally, his voice ringing with regret and sincerity.

"I don't understand," Daisy ventured a little hesitantly, not wanting to make the escalating situation any worse but she felt she deserved some answers. "Why was it so important to get Booth here tonight?" Sweets had been watching Daisy closely and had seen her anger and hurt receding as she got caught up in the drama developing between Hodgins and Angela. He knew he wouldn't get a better chance than now to try and explain things to her.

"We're all concerned about Booth and Brennan's relationship, Daisy," he said softly, reaching out and covering one of her hands with his, encouraged when she didn't pull back.

"Why?" she queried, honestly curious. "They look fine to me," she nodded toward the dance floor and everyone glanced over to see the couple dancing, Booth's head bent closely over Brennan's.

"You don't understand," Sweets said a little condescendingly. Daisy jerked her hand from under his and crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him.

"Then explain it to me, Lance," she hissed. She might have been caught up in what was going on between Angela and Hodgins but she hadn't forgotten what had been done to her today and she wasn't anywhere near ready to forgive, especially when he looked so reluctant to do as she asked. "Fine," she snapped, her patience at an end, "I'm out of here." She pushed against Angela indicating her desire to get up but Angela didn't budge.

"Sorry," Angela told her with a wry grin and a shrug, "but it looks like you just became a coconspirator."

"Is that really wise, Angela?" Cam asked before she could stop herself.

"Do we really have a choice, Cam?" Angela countered. "Daisy deserves some sort of explanation for their moronic behavior," Angela jerked her head in Hodgins and Sweets direction, ignoring their "Hey's" of protest. "And I don't see how we can do that without letting her in on the plan."

Cam's eyes narrowed as she considered Angela's argument. Having finished Brennan's Long Island Iced Tea and chased it with Booth's Scotch, she was no longer exactly sober but she wasn't drunk enough not to consider the pitfalls.

"Are you actually capable of keeping a secret?" Cam asked, eying the younger woman so closely that Daisy was creeped out. "We would have to let her participate so she would be as fully vested as the rest of us and couldn't rat us out," Cam mused to Angela without waiting for an answer to her question.

"I vote yes," Sweets spoke up in approval.

"Like you two get a vote," Cam snorted into the last half inch of her drink, indicating Hodgins and Sweets with a pointing finger. "Where is that waitress?" she queried looking around for the woman in question.

Daisy's wide eyes bounced from person to person, not really knowing what was going on and becoming surer by the second that she didn't want to. These people thought she was weird but she was well on her way to thinking they were all, including her former boyfriend, completely nuts. "Of course I can keep a secret, Dr. Saroyan," Daisy gasped in outrage at the way everyone was talking about and over her as if she either wasn't here or wasn't intelligent enough to note the insult. Now her integrity had been insulted on top of everything else that had happened today and she had had just about enough of this whole bunch. "But I'm not sure I even want to know what kind of crazy secrets you people have and I'm quite certain that I don't want to participate in your bizarre little plots," she snapped angrily, once again pushing against Angela to gain her freedom.

Every other person at the table froze, staring at Daisy in astonishment. Cam, Hodgins and Angela had spent lots of time warning Sweets that he couldn't share their little project with Daisy, sure that because of her general personality and her hero worship of Brennan, she would immediately give them away. To Sweets' shame, he had wholeheartedly agreed and hadn't even considered letting his girlfriend in on the plan. It had never occurred to a single one of them that she wouldn't want to know what was going on or that she would refuse to participate if given the opportunity.

This presented a significant problem. If they didn't bring Daisy into the circle and swear her to secrecy, especially considering the way she currently felt toward Sweets and probably Hodgins, she wouldn't feel any loyalty toward them and would probably spill her guts to Brennan the first chance she got. Granted, she didn't yet have any details but she knew they were up to something and they couldn't have her warning Booth and Brennan and messing up their already working plan_. What the hell were they supposed to do now?_

Angela decided to try friendly persuasion while the others were still mulling over the problem. She turned to Daisy with a warm smile. "Daisy, we seem to have run into a problem here. We," she motioned between her and Cam with a finger, "think you deserve a full explanation for what happened today but we can't really give it to you unless we know we can trust you," she patted Daisy's arm as if they were BFFs.

"Yeah, I got that already," Daisy replied, sarcasm apparent in her voice. She was getting really tired of being treated like an idiot. Angela blinked then her smile became genuine and developed into a laugh. Sweets grinned and Hodgins smiled at the unexpected spunk of the younger woman. Cam took a slug of the fresh drink the waitress had just delivered.

"I am really beginning to like you," Angela praised.

"But?" Daisy held Angela's eyes, not at all fooled by the friendly manner. It was true that she had personality and boundary issues, but she was almost as smart as her hero, Dr. Brennan, and she wasn't nearly as removed from reality as her mentor. She also had the added advantage of having worked behind the scenes at the Jeffersonian for quite some time now and she had a pretty good understanding of each individual at the table. Or at least she thought she did.

"Okay, then," Angela dropped the friendly smile.

"No," gasped Sweets in horror, reading Angela's intent in her eyes. "No, Angela. Leave her alone," he said more firmly. Angela ignored him and turned toward Daisy with a smile that made Daisy swallow hard but she didn't shrink back from the look in the artist's eyes. "I mean it, Angela. Leave. Her. Alone." Sweets raised his voice and put every bit of authority he could muster into it, grabbing Angela's arm and meeting her gaze levelly. "NO!" Angela was actually impressed at the way he stared her down. So was everyone else. Even Daisy felt herself softening toward Sweets at his protective attitude.

"Then you fix it, Sweets. Before I have to," she snapped. Daisy snorted and everyone turned to look at her with varying degrees of confusion and amazement.

"Oh, please," said Daisy, meeting Angela's eyes without fear. "What are you going to do, make me disappear if I don't cooperate?" Despite Angela's sometimes tough talk, Daisy's observations had convinced her that the other woman had a heart of marshmallow and wouldn't hurt a fly. Hodgins almost choked on his drink in amusement at the battle of wills going on before him, stunned that the intern would face off with someone they all just automatically let push them around. Sweets looked impressed but eyed both women warily as if he wasn't quite sure what to expect from either. Cam watched the confrontation quietly, waiting for the victor to emerge.

Angela grinned, liking Daisy more by the minute. "No, I won't make you disappear," she assured Daisy. "But I will make life for you at the Jeffersonian a living hell," she said, her voice hardening and Daisy's eyes widened. She believed her. "I won't like it, but I will do it," Angela assured her with another pat to her arm, not really enjoying the cowing the intern but it had to be done. They couldn't have Daisy ruining the plan. Then she went in for the kill. "And if that's not enough, I'll make sure you get fired and never work with Brennan again." Daisy gasped at the threat of her worst nightmare.

"You can't fire me," Daisy objected with false bravado, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice.

"No, but I can." Cam spoke up and Daisy's horrified gaze flew to the pathologist and she saw by the determination and apology in Cam's eyes that she would do exactly that. "I wouldn't like it, but I would do it," Cam echoed Angela's earlier words.

"Why?" demanded Daisy, unable to stop the slight whine, looking from Cam to Angela. "You can't really be afraid that Dr. Brennan will give serious consideration to anything I say."

"This is a very delicate situation," Sweets interjected and Daisy's frustrated gaze flew to him.

"Then stop dancing around and tell me what the hell is going on, Lance," Daisy snapped, tired of getting jerked around by this whole bunch.

"Whoa," Hodgins halted Sweets just as he opened his mouth. "How do we know we can trust you?" he asked Daisy, trying hard not to be offensive or threatening.

"You don't," Daisy returned, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring at him. They were at a stalemate and they all knew it.

"I trust you, Daisy," Sweets finally took control of the situation as he realized he should have done from the start. "You guys don't have to trust Daisy, but you should trust me, since we're all in this together. She deserves an explanation and she's going to get it." He met each of his coconspirators' eyes, his filled with determination.

"I'm in," Hodgins caved instantly, knowing Sweets was right.

"Okay," Cam conceded, giving Sweets a look that let him know she would hold him personally responsible if this came back to bite them in the ass.

Angela gave Daisy a long, complicated look then turned to Sweets. "Daisy and I understand each other so I'm in." She gracefully gave in to the inevitable.

Sweets couldn't help the wry smile that curved his lips at Angela's attitude. "I wasn't asking for your permission but thank you for trusting me," he told his companions. "Why don't we talk privately?" he turned back to Daisy with a smile.

"I'm fine where I am," Daisy answered, not ready to be alone with Sweets just yet. Until she heard the entire story, she had no idea whether she would even be able to consider forgiving him. "Start talking," she encouraged and barely kept from responding to the warm smile he gave her, inwardly cursing the effect his awkward charm had on her.

"You must have noticed that Dr. Brennan and Booth have been fighting a lot lately," Sweets said and Daisy nodded. "We're very concerned that if they don't work out whatever has gone wrong between them, things are going to continue to deteriorate and their partnership may not hold under the strain."

"They have been fighting a lot lately but I don't understand why you four accepted responsibility to fix it," Daisy returned.

Sweets tried to speak then bit his lip. It wasn't that he didn't trust Daisy with knowing what he had done, it was more that he was afraid of her response, he suddenly realized. Gathering his courage he met her eyes levelly and told her exactly what he had said to Booth about the brain scans, his gut churning with dread when he saw her eyes widen with horror.

"Daisy, we really do just want to help Booth and Bren," broke in Angela when she saw Sweets floundering.

Daisy turned to Angela with an accusing gaze. "What did you do to them?" she demanded of the artist. Angela gasped in outrage.

"I'm doing this entirely because they're my friends and they belong together," Angela snapped self righteously but her voice didn't hold any real conviction and the glances she kept shooting in Hodgins direction told Daisy that Angela's motives weren't entirely altruistic. Hodgins snorted into his drink.

"Yeah, we all think they belong together, except maybe Booth's new girlfriend."

Daisy gasped at this new information. She had had up close and personal experience of people interfering in her personal life just today and she felt a lot of sympathy for this unknown woman. These people were planning to destroy her relationship with a wonderful man and possibly her life just because they could. Anger, fury actually, overrode her horror at this little tale and she turned to face Cam. "What about you, Dr. Saroyan? Did you give bad advice to one of them or was it something worse?" She demanded scathingly, not really caring if she got fired in her fury.

"Oh, it was much worse than that," Cam confessed quietly, the alcohol in her system giving her the courage to finally come clean about what she had done. "I told Brennan that Booth was in love with the woman in his dream and he would never love her. I was cruel and vicious and, at the time, I meant to be," she admitted, gazing sightlessly into her drink because she couldn't bear the see the looks of censure she was sure she would be on the faces of her friends. "I told her to go to Guatemala and she did. I made this whole mess and now I need to fix it," she finished, finally lifting her head and seeing the horrified, judgmental looks fixed on her.

"_You did what_?" roared Angela, finally recovering her voice after the shock of that confession.

"Cam, how could you have done something like that?" demanded Hodgins.

"Why didn't you tell us this before, Dr. Saroyan?" asked Sweets stiffly.

Daisy looked at the squabbling, condemnatory people surrounding her and felt like laughing hysterically. Actually, she felt like saying her piece and getting as far away from this group as possible and that was exactly what she was going to do, she decided. Slapping her hands down on the table so hard that a couple of glasses fell over, she drew everyone's attention to her. "Do you people even hear yourselves?" she demanded, not even trying to hide the condemnation in her tone. "Even if we forget the fact that you have no right to interfere in their lives in the first place, you're not doing this because you care about their happiness. You're doing it to make yourself feel better." Ignoring the babble of objections erupting around her, she focused on the one person in this group she felt like she might actually be able to get through to. "Lance, how can you do this?"

"Daisy, I understand that you're upset and need some time to process all this..," Daisy interrupted his spiel with a snort.

"I don't need time to _process_, Lance. I don't want anything to do with this and if you're as smart as I've always thought you were, you'll talk to Booth and Dr. Brennan and tell them everything before…." Daisy was interrupted by Angela.

"Are you threatening to tell them?" Angela' voice and narrowed eyes held a threat but Daisy wasn't cowed this time.

"No, I won't tell them," she responded and the other four relaxed, "because I don't want them to blame me," she wanted to be sure they understood she wasn't giving this scheme even her tacit approval. "But I won't have to. Neither one of them is stupid and they will eventually figure it out on their own." Her eyes narrowed as everyone but Sweets sniggered at her conviction that Booth and Brennan would figure it out and her anger at every single awful thing that had happened today spiked. She instantly went from trying to talk them out of this before they managed to lose two friends to thinking they deserved whatever they got for messing with people's lives. "They will figure it out and they are so going to kick your asses when they do," she couldn't keep the glee at that thought from her voice. "Now get out of my way," she snapped at Angela who raised a brow, gave her a small smile and slid out of the seat to allow Daisy to exit.

"Wait." Sweets grabbed her hand and looked at her pleadingly. "Let me take you home so we can talk," he pleaded. She didn't even have to think about it. Her mind had been made up during this bizarre group encounter.

"No," she answered firmly, pulling her hand away. "I thought I knew you, Lance, but it's obvious that I don't if you can't see how wrong this is. I don't want to talk to you until you get your priorities straight." She stood and turned to Hodgins with a sad smile. "I'm beginning to think you did me a favor today, however inadvertently." Without another word, she turned and walked away, ignoring her aching heart and knowing she was doing the right thing for her. She left absolute silence behind her.

"Well, that could have gone better," Angela breathed, trying to lighten the mood Daisy had left behind.

"Gee, Angela, you think?" snapped Sweets, his heart aching and his mind urging him to go after Daisy and insist that she listen to him. But she had made her position clear and he had to admit she had made several valid points that he hadn't even considered in his zeal to clear his conscience.

"Who would have ever thought Daisy Wicks would be the voice of reason?" Hodgins mused in wonder. "You don't think she's right, do you?" he asked worriedly. "About Booth and Brennan figuring this out," he clarified at everyone's questioning looks.

"God, I hope not," Cam sighed.

"Yeah, that would be bad," Angela agreed, looking at her companions and noting that they were all avoiding each other's eyes. Her gaze centered on Cam and she fought the urge to verbally flay the other woman for what she had done to Brennan. Cam would definitely be answering for her actions but this wasn't the time or place for that discussion. Plus, at the moment, Angela was feeling more than a little confused and uncomfortable with her own motivations and she certainly didn't want to drag them out into the open light of day which might happen in such a spirited discussion.

In truth, every person at the table was feeling guilty and very much in the wrong for what they had been planning to do to their friends, knowing that Daisy had hit the nail on the head. Even though they truly believed the partners belonged together, none of their motives were pure. They each and every one had some long, hard thinking to do before they continued with this and they all knew it. They all also wanted to escape their current companions, hopint it would quiet their consciences. And not a single one of them wanted to be wanted to be at the table when Booth and Brennan returned, fearful of what the discerning eyes of Booth would read on their faces.

"I really should be going. Michelle will be wondering where I am," Cam made her excuses first, not even batting an eye at the lie. Michelle was spending the night with a friend. Cam slid out of the booth and was quickly gone.

"Me, too," Sweets said quickly, "I have some things to do in the office." He didn't even attempt to make up a believable excuse and no one questioned what he could have to do in the office on a Friday night. Hodgins stood up and allowed the younger man to escape then sat back down and looked at Angela helplessly.

Angela chewed her lip and shot glances toward the dance floor, knowing that Booth and Brennan would be returning soon but she couldn't just take off and leave Brennan after insisting on this night out. Hodgins felt the same way about Booth but he so didn't want to be here when they got back.

"We could leave them a note," he suggested hopefully and a little desperately. Angela blinked and then started to smile, liking the idea, especially the escaping part.

"We could," she agreed. "And if we weren't here, Booth will probably feel like he has to take Brennan home," she added, her matchmaking little heart automatically looking at the possibilities.

"Yeah and that could lead to good things," Hodgins nodded.

"Okay," agreed Angela. Hodgins grabbed a napkin from the table and a pen from his pocket and quickly scribbled a note to Booth then handed the pen to Angela so she could do the same for Brennan.

"Come on and I'll take you home," Hodgins offered, standing and holding out a hand to Angela. She took it without hesitation and stood. Within seconds, they were walking out the front door side by side, both ignoring the issues that had been raised between them tonight and concentrating their thoughts on what they were going to do about Booth and Brennan.

Only minutes later, Booth and Brennan returned to their table, fully prepared to stage a huge fight so they could mess with the squints and, more importantly, so they could get the hell out of here and be alone. They were both surprised to find the table empty and puzzled to look around and not spot any of their companions. Urging Brennan to sit, Booth automatically slid in beside her and spotted the napkins with writing on them. He handed the one with Brennan's name on it to her and scowled at the other one, trying to decipher the chicken scratch. The only thing he could clearly make out was his name at the top and Hodgins' signature at the bottom.

"It's from Angela. She just says she had to go," Brennan said, confused and a little disappointed at her friends' sudden departure.

"Can you read this?" Booth asked handing her the other napkin.

"Of course," Brennan responded, her eyes scanning the seemingly indecipherable squiggles. Booth grinned at her confidence and scooted closer. "It says that they all had to go and that Hodgins took care of the bill. Damn," she said, tossing the napkin on the table and leaning into the corner of the seat where Booth's big body had pushed her.

"Why does that disappoint you? I thought you were eager to be alone with me," he teased, leaning closer and nuzzling his nose against her ear.

"I am," she admitted instantly, turning so that her breasts dragged against his chest and they both groaned and moved a little closer. "But I was kind of looking forward to messing with them." Booth's arm went around her back and pulled her sharply against him, flattening her aching breasts against the granite wall of his chest.

"You can mess with me all you like," he offered huskily, his lips wandering over the side of her neck.

"Really?" he could hear the smile and excitement in her voice.

"Umm hmm, you can consider it practice," he encouraged, his hand moving down to her hip and dragging her leg up so that she was almost straddling him sideways. _God, he was so damned hot from the encounter in the alcove and just holding her close on the dance floor that he couldn't keep his hands off of her._

"I don't think it will be the same," she stated factually, moaning softly as he hit a particularly sensitive spot on her neck. "But I really could use the practice," she hurriedly continued, not wanting him to stop. Her hands moved to his chest and stroked firmly up and down several times before settling on his belt buckle.

"It damned well better not be the same," Booth growled, grabbing her hand to keep it from moving any lower. His head lifted from her neck and he rested his forehead against hers. "I would have to shoot Hodgins or Sweets if you messed with them like this," he informed her and the possessive jealousy in his voice and eyes sent a little shiver down Brennan's spine. To her astonishment, she absolutely loved it when he turned all growling Me, Tarzan, You, Jane on her.

"Good to know," she grinned up at him, using one of the phrases she had most recently picked up from him. The jealous glitter in his eyes didn't abate at all so she set about soothing the savage beast, at least until they got home, then she would encourage beastie to come out and play. "You know I would never be like this with Hodgins or Sweets or anyone else," she whispered, her lips trailing from his firm chin across his jaw in nibbling little kisses. "I will only ever be this way with you, Booth, because I love you," she whispered into his ear, just before her tongue invaded it.

"God, you're killing me here, baby," he moaned. The hand on her back slid down to her bottom and tightened, tilting her hips and grinding her against his twitching erection.

"Then you had better take me home before I have to do you right here and now," she panted into his ear, her body straining toward his, eager for closer contact. He shuddered and buried his face in her neck, his body so tight with frustrated desire that he wanted to beg her to do exactly that.

"You're going to have to give me a minute," he finally answered, taking deep, gulping breaths to get himself under control.

"Maybe I should move," she suggested, her reluctance to do so obvious in her voice.

"I think you're going to have to or we're never going to get out of here," he admitted, lifting his head and smiling wryly. Regretfully separating their bodies, she wriggled backward until they were no longer touching and reached for the full drink sitting before her with a shaking hand. Booth did the same. They sipped their drinks, not looking at each other or even speaking, both knowing that when they touched again, they wouldn't be stopping.

"To hell with this," he said only minutes later. Brennan's startled eyes flew to meet his and she saw from the scorching heat radiating from their depths that he wasn't cooling off any more than she was. "Let's go home," he urged, standing and holding out his hand. She didn't even hesitate to put her hand in his and slide out of the booth, as always, ready to follow where he led.


	19. Chapter 19

**This one is a little short but I hope you will forgive me. Please let me know what you think. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

"I thought you were going to wait until we got home to be bad?" Booth asked with a raised brow as Brennan grabbed his hand and dragged him into the narrow alley between the night club and the next building.

"I changed my mind," she answered over her shoulder, pulling his unresisting form deeper into the shadows. "I like this idea much better. Think about it, Booth," she purred against his ear, after pushing him against the rough brick wall, "the adrenalin rush of possible discovery while you," her teeth closed on the side of his neck and her hand drifted down to ghost over the length of his erection, "fuck me against the wall in an alley."

Before the echo of her words died out, Booth had their positions reversed, his hands under her hips, lifting and urging her to wrap those long legs clad only in black leather and fuck me heels around his waist. His mouth opened over hers and his tongue pushed inside, plunging deeper and harder with every thrust, just like he wanted to be doing to her body. _God, he couldn't possibly count the number of times he had fantasized about just this situation, her all hot and needy, pinned between his burning body and a hard wall. _It brought out every primitive, aggressive instinct to claim and mate that he possessed. And her words, God, those words coming out of her normally prim and oh so proper mouth turned him on to an almost unbelievable degree, even the possibility of getting caught adding to his excitement.

Brennan wrapped her arms around his neck, her tongue tangling and parrying with his, reveling in the aggressive dominance of his kiss. She moaned as his big hands roughly slid up the outside of her thighs, pushing her skirt up and cupping the firm flesh of her rear end that was left bare by her miniscule panties. Groaning at the feel of all that soft, hot skin under his hands, Booth's fingers tightened, unconsciously digging into her flesh. Hunger clawed at him, relentless and raw. Tilting her hips upward, he surged against her, grinding his erection against her mound. The rough clutch of his fingers grasping her bottom in such a possessive grip made her ache for fulfillment and she mentally cursed the clothing separating them.

"More," she whimpered against his mouth, her body twisting under the press of his, trying to get closer.

"Yes. More," he growled low in his throat, unable to stop the forceful, possessive thrusts of his hips against her throbbing folds.

Shivering at the delicious friction caused by the satin of her underwear sliding over the sensitized flesh, she tightened her arms around his neck and canted her hips, eagerly seeking fuller contact. Every erotic brush of his body against hers increased the ache in her core, feeding her need and making her hunger for more at the same time, making her shake with the need to have him inside her.

"Booth," she pleaded, digging her nails into his shoulders and dropping her head back to rest against the wall, shuddering as she met his ravenous eyes.

Holding her eyes, Booth meshed their groins tightly enough to support her body against the wall, dragging shuddering groans from both of them. His hands went to the top button on her shirt, but she chose the second his fingers made contact with material to tighten her legs around his waist and roll her hips against his. With a growl, he gripped both sides of the shirt and jerked, popping off buttons all the way down to the belt cinched just below her waist. His aggressive action and the purely predatory gleam in his eyes pushed her heart rate up to an erratic level and the sound of her own pulse echoed in her ears. She could feel his barely controlled tension in the hard, quivering muscles under her caressing hands and gloried in it. She was so wound up she couldn't stop rolling her hips against his, harder and faster, eagerly seeking the release that was already so close. Her hands went to his shirt and quickly separated buttons from holes, so impatient to feel his hot, bare flesh under her hands she could barely form a coherent thought.

"God, baby, you are so beautiful," he breathed, his eyes dropping to the expanse of silky flesh revealed by her gaping shirt. His breath caught as his eyes fell on the firm mounds of her lush breasts. The lacy little white strapless bra that lifted those luscious mounds and barely covered the erect nipples had to be the sexiest thing he had ever seen. With a moan he dropped his head and his mouth opened over the silky skin of her collarbone, his tongue snaking out and leaving a wet trail as he moved lower.

She gasped and her hands moved down the hard muscles of his chest, seeking and finding his small, pointed nipples, raking her nails over them again and again, indicating what she wanted from him. With a groan, he lowered his head and raked his tongue under the edge of that sexy bra, freeing an aching nipple and flicking his tongue against its taut tip.

Whimpering, Brennan arched her back and buried one hand in his hair, pulling him closer. With a growl, Booth's hands tightened on her hips as he took the sensitive nipple between his lips, rolling his tongue around the tip then sucking hard. Brennan pressed his head closer and her head rolled against the wall as exquisite pleasure radiated from her breast to her lower muscles in almost painful spasms of arousal. She could feel the rough brick digging into her skin but she didn't care about the slight discomfort, all she cared about was getting him inside of her as soon as possible. "Booth, please," she begged, her hands going to his belt and deftly dispensing with it before moving to his zipper.

Booth's entire body tightened at the yearning need in her voice. The breathy little moans of mingled arousal and pleasure escaping her throat shot straight to his straining cock and made it impossibly harder. Her hand tunneled under his boxers and closed around his steely erection and he suddenly needed to be inside of her more than he needed to draw his next breath. Moving to her other nipple, his hand slipped between them, intent on getting all of the obstructions out of the way but his fingers slid through damp curls and he couldn't resist further exploration. His fingers slid lower, slipping over her distended nub and tracing the contours of her slick, swollen folds.

Brennan's hand tightened on his cock and began to move in short, jerky spurts as her hips twisted against his hand, desperate to find the contact that would send her over the edge and relieve the steadily increasing throb between her thighs. Booth understood that need because he was feeling it pretty damned powerfully himself at the moment. He wanted to sink into her, bury himself as deeply as possible and slam into her tight sheath until she came apart in his arms but not quite yet.

"Come for me, baby," he demanded, raising his head and meeting her glazed, blue eyes. He slid a single finger deep in her channel and his thumb found her clit, grazing lightly then pressing down hard. His entire body shook with the effort of holding back his own release as her strokes on his erection became long and hard. Knowing he couldn't hold out much longer, he slid another finger inside her picking up a deep, hard rhythm while his thumb rubbed her clit in firm circles.

Brennan's frantic panting hitched at every brush of his thumb. The erotic feeling of his fingers invading her body sent her heart hammering out of control and her inner walls tightened around his thrusting fingers. _God, it was so good but she wanted more. _She wanted him, wanted his body ramming deeply into hers, stretching her tight and making her scream with the need to come.

"Please…," she moaned but before she could get the rest of the request out, Booth bent his head and bit down lightly on her nipple, never slowing the plunge of his fingers inside her body. And then she was screaming as her body clenched around his fingers in amazing spasms of fulfillment. Booth's mouth slammed down over hers, cutting her off mid scream and swallowing her moans as she bucked against him, riding out the blissful feelings gripping her body in pulses of ecstasy.

With a shaking hand, Booth brushed aside Brennan's hand and freed himself from his pants and underwear, unable to wait a second longer to be inside of her. He wanted, no he needed, to feel her body clenching his cock just as it had his fingers, needed it with something akin to desperation. Sliding her panties out of the way, Booth guided himself to her entrance and paused with just the head of his erection inside of her, reaching for some semblance of control. Brennan's hips swiveled, pulling him deeper and he knew there was no control to be found for him, not right now. Sinking his tongue into her mouth, he plunged inside her body at the same instant, filling her completely and shuddering at the feeling of her tight sheath enveloping his throbbing length.

Brennan let out a keening cry at the sensation of her body stretching to accommodate his size and the depth of his penetration, the fading contractions of her inner muscles instantly renewed.

Booth withdrew and slammed back into her over and over again, one of his hands spread protectively over the back of her head and the other covering the curve of her buttocks to shelter her from the roughness of the bricks as much as possible. He was rock hard inside of her and desperately driving for his own release but he instinctively sought to protect her, even when completely out of control. His breathing was as ragged as hers as she clenched him tighter and tighter, whimpering into his mouth as her orgasm extended and drove her higher and higher toward some impossible goal. With a ragged groan, Booth tightened and shifted the hand on her bottom, tilting her pelvis slightly and he pushed harder and deeper, grinding against her clit with every delicious thrust.

Brennan's vision blurred and she screamed into his mouth, sobbing in satisfaction as wave after wave of erotic shudders rippled through her core, rushing through her body in a shock wave of indescribable ecstasy. Her inner muscles clamping down on his throbbing flesh was the signal to Booth that he didn't need to hold back any longer and he let himself go, so close to his own satisfaction that he could almost taste it. His gut was so tight it was cramping and the need to feel the pleasure he knew was waiting just out of reach became paramount. He surged against her, each thrust pushing him closer to the edge until, suddenly, he was there, standing on the precipice, his body hot and hard and more than ready to fall off the edge. With a low growl, he thrust hard and stayed there, emptying himself deeply inside of her as wave after shuddering wave of pleasure washed over his body.

Long minutes later, Booth became aware that he was leaning against Brennan so heavily he was crushing her against the wall but he was so weak and satiated he couldn't move so he could only hope she could still breathe. "Are you ok?" he managed to get out.

"Umm hmm," she purred, not bothering to lift her head from his shoulder. She was so relaxed that she wasn't sure she ever wanted to move again. Booth couldn't help but grin at the satisfied sound of her voice.

Awareness of where they were crept into his consciousness and he looked around quickly to make sure they were still alone. "We have to get out of her, Bones," he urged, not relishing the thought of being discovered like this now that he was thinking with his big head again.

"Why?" she murmured, snuggling closer and Booth could tell she was falling asleep on him. It made him feel supremely masculine, like the alpha male she was always calling him, to know he could wear her out enough to fall asleep in an alley but they had to get out of here.

"Come on, baby. You can't go to sleep here. We have to go," he insisted, smoothing the hair from her face and meeting sleepy, sated blue eyes.

"Fine," she sighed, raising her head and tightening her arms around his neck to give him a long, lingering kiss. Booth returned the kiss with interest until she shifted against him and he felt himself getting hard again, still nestled inside her. As much as he had enjoyed what they had just done, he wasn't willing to repeat it, not here anyway.

"No," he panted, reluctantly separating their lips.

"Are you sure?" she teased, rolling her hips. Groaning, he dropped his forehead to rest against hers, his hands going to her hips to hold them still before she changed his mind.

"I'm sure," he answered, stepping back far enough to separate their bodies and remove himself from temptation. With a regretful sigh, Brennan loosened her legs from around his waist and he gently lowered her back to her feet. Finished straightening his clothing, Booth looked up to see Brennan had finished doing the same to her own and was now studying him closely.

"What?" he asked, looking down to make sure his zipper was done up.

"Are you upset about this?" she asked, gesturing to indicate the alley, not really understanding what the hurry was. No, she didn't particularly want to get caught in such a compromising position but she had mentally calculated the odds of that happening and they were minimal compared to the pleasure they had just brought each other so she just didn't get it. She wasn't upset about his being in a hurry but she needed to get some practice in at messing with people and Booth had said she could mess with him as much as she liked. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to start.

"What? No, how can you even ask me that?" Booth responded then reminded himself that despite how close they were, his and Brennan's thought processes or views on certain things would never be the same. Stepping closer, he caught her face between his hands and tilted it up. "You know I enjoyed every second of you being bad," he reassured her. "In fact, I'm pretty sure that one of these days, your being bad is going to kill me," he grinned and dropped a light kiss on her mouth but he could tell she wasn't buying it for a minute. "I just think that in some instances, your definition of bad varies from mine," he tried to explain, not even sure himself why he was so eager to vacate the alley.

"Sexual situations, you mean?" she asked, nodding slowly, apparently agreeing with herself before he even answered.

"Sometimes," agreed Booth, wishing this conversation had never started. Slipping an arm around her shoulders, he led her out of the alley, worrying a little at how quiet she was.

"Very well," she said suddenly. "I accept your theory and agree that we should test its validity," she continued in her best teacher voice, the one that turned Booth on every time she used it. He stopped next to the SUV and turned to her, his gut telling she was up to something but she looked absolutely serious.

"I don't know what that means," he admitted, not entirely sure he wanted to.

"It means that I agree with your suggestion that we should spend the weekend exploring your idea of being bad in sexual situations as well as mine," she explained, unable to suppress her laughter at the relief spreading across his face.

Booth was relieved that something that could easily have turned something beautiful between them ugly had so easily been resolved. Then he became suspicious. His Bones never gave in that easily. His eyes narrowed and suddenly he knew. "You were messing with me?" he asked and accused at the same time. Her impish grin gave him his answer. Laughing, he pulled her against him for a long, hard kiss. "You are so gonna get it when we get home," he threatened, releasing her and opening her door.

Primly sliding into her seat, she turned her head and ran a lascivious glance down his body. "I'm counting on it," she assured him throatily. "It's your turn next," she teased, shutting the door in his face with a laugh.

Grinning, Booth walked around the SUV and climbed behind the wheel sure that if this weekend didn't kill him, nothing could.


	20. Chapter 20

**Musie was in a playful mood today, so I took advantage of it. Hope you enjoy our efforts.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Lance Sweets paced his office waiting for his first appointment to arrive, his agitation increasing by the second. He didn't know what to do and his time was running out. He had spent the weekend giving serious thought to Daisy's objections to their interference in Booth and Brennan's love life and he had to admit she had some good points.

He wasn't entirely sure about Angela and Hodgins but he knew his and Cam's motives were very suspect, they were doing this as much for their own sakes as for Booth and Brennan. She was also right about them not having the right to interfere in the first place and his logic told him that Booth and Brennan would eventually figure out what they were doing. The fear of what the partners would do then made his gut cramp with dread every time he thought about it. Oh, he wasn't afraid of physical retaliation but he was afraid they would never speak to him again if they figured it out on their own and he couldn't bear the thought of losing the hard won respect and friendship of people he considered two of his best friends and almost surrogate parents. He was ashamed of his behavior and considering his profession, he was more than a little humiliated that his questionably stable girlfriend had had to point out the error of his ways to him. Despite all that, he still wasn't sure he had the guts to come clean with them.

He knew that he would face the wrath of Cam, Angela and Hodgins if he spilled his guts without discussing it with them first but Angela was the only one who gave him pause in that scenario. Unfortunately for her, his fear of her retaliation didn't overshadow his apprehension about Booth and Brennan's reactions to their group plotting. _Maybe he could just talk the others out of any further action, they could disband their group and Brennan and Booth would never have to know_, he mused, his eyes brightening with hope. _Yeah, like that's going to happen_, he snorted to himself seconds later, his shoulders drooping dejectedly. He could just see Angela voluntarily giving up on her little project. Not. And that brought up another touchy subject. Did he have any more right to rat the others out than he had to try to interfere in Booth and Brennan's life? The short answer was no but he honestly didn't see how he could confess without implicating the others. Booth and Brennan would never believe he had come up with something like this on his own. Well, Booth wouldn't anyway and he was the one Sweets really had to worry about figuring things out. _So what was he going to do? _Before he could come up with an answer, the door opened and his time was up.

"Why won't you tell me, Booth?" Brennan whined, preceding a laughing Booth into Sweet's office.

"Because you don't need to know, Bones," he answered cheerfully and Sweets felt a smile spreading across his face at the behavior he had seen from the partners a hundred times before. Behavior that said things were good between them. His shame and guilt receded and he felt pride taking their place. Something good had apparently happened between them this weekend and that could only be from the interference Daisy had so vocally repudiated.

"Good morning, Dr. Brennan, Booth," Sweets greeted, his grin getting wider when Brennan shot him a look of annoyance.

"Hiya, Sweets," Booth tossed back, dropping onto the love seat and patting the cushion beside him for the narrow eyed Brennan to take a seat. She sat but she placed herself as far away from Booth as she could get. Sweets could tell she wasn't angry, even though she crossed her arms over her chest and looked straight ahead, but maybe he should intervene before she did get angry. Still grinning to see the couple acting so much like their old selves, Sweets sat down.

"Is there something bothering you, Dr. Brennan?" Sweets asked, not even trying to hide the amusement in his voice. Brennan's eyes snapped to him and narrowed and he was no longer amused. She opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted by Booth.

"So, Sweets, what happened to everyone Friday night?" and Sweets' attention immediately turned to Booth, his mouth opening and closing several times before he got himself in hand.

"Umm, Cam had to get home to Michelle and I didn't feel like staying. I don't know about Angela and Hodgins," he replied after clearing his throat. "Are you saying that Angela and Hodgins just left, too?" he asked, speculation rampant in his eyes. If these two had been without supervision Friday night, there was no telling what they had gotten into.

"Nope, everyone was gone when we got back to the table," Booth supplied, then decided Sweets was looking entirely too pleased with himself. "Things not go well with Daisy?" Booth asked sympathetically. Sweets winced at the reminder of how not well things had not gone with Daisy.

"Not really," he muttered and sank back against his chair, staring at his hands morosely.

"That's too bad," Booth murmured.

"I'm really sorry, Sweets." Sweets started when Brennan leaned forward and laid a comforting hand on his arm. The sympathy and support from Booth wasn't unexpected but it was something else entirely when offered by the emotionally reserved Brennan. He felt like he had just reached a pinnacle he had been striving toward for years. He looked up into sympathetic blue eyes and knew that he wouldn't be telling them anything, he couldn't stand to have them withdraw from his life.

"Thanks, Dr. Brennan," he returned, so touched he had to blink a couple of times to clear his eyes. Straightening his spine, he sat up and gave them a professional smile. It was time to get to work. "So, did you guys have a good weekend?" he asked. Brennan snorted, shot Booth a dark look and resumed her previous position. Booth laughed. With a resigned sigh, Sweets realized he was going to have to dig to get to the bottom of whatever was bothering Brennan about the weekend. He couldn't let the good they had accomplished with Friday night be undone.

"Did you have a good weekend, Dr. Brennan," he asked, knowing she would be more likely to answer a direct question.

"It was all right," she answered with a negligent shrug, picking at a spot on her pants. Sweets frowned. It wasn't like Brennan not to meet his eyes when she was speaking to him. Booth's soft chuckle drew his attention.

"What about you, Booth, did you have a good weekend?" Sweets asked curiously.

"Oh yeah," Booth's voice was husky and heavy with satisfaction and Sweets was left with little doubt of how Booth had spent his weekend.

"Then why won't you tell me what you did?" demanded Brennan, her voice full of frustration as she turned on her partner. Sweets swallowed hard as he realized that Booth and Brennan hadn't spent any time together this weekend and this conversation couldn't possibly lead anywhere good.

"I think we should get started with our session," he interjected nervously but he could have saved his breath. They didn't even glance in his direction.

"Why do you want to know, Bones?" Booth asked smoothly.

"I'm just curious, Booth," Brennan shrugged negligently. "I know you weren't home," she added, her voice ripe with jealousy. Sweets wanted to rejoice at the sound. Until Booth answered.

"How do you know I wasn't home?" he asked, his voice considerably cooler and his eyes narrowed.

"Guys, maybe we should talk about something else," Sweets' voice rose but they had shut him out of their little world and didn't notice.

"I stopped by Saturday night," she shrugged again. "I thought we were supposed to be able to tell each other anything, Booth, especially here in Sweets' "zone of truth". Isn't that what you always say?" she leaned closer until they were nose to nose. "What is it you're so afraid to tell me?" she taunted between gritted teeth.

_Holy crap_, this was so not good, thought Sweets frantically as Booth stiffened at the taunt. He could see Booth gathering the courage to tell Brennan about the other woman and he couldn't let that happen. She was jealous now but if she found out Booth had spent the weekend having sex with someone else, she would be hurt and angry and that just might be the factor that ended their partnership.

"Fine," Booth hissed, leaning even closer to his partner, his eyes narrowed angrily. "In honor of Sweets' zone of truth, I'll tell you but, just remember that you asked for it. I spent the…,"

"No, Booth!" yelped Sweets. Booth turned his head and pinned Sweets with a look of such resolve that the younger man's heart sank.

"She's right, Sweets. Aren't you the one who always tells us we need to be honest with each other? Where better to tell her than here in your zone of truth?" Sweets was so agitated he didn't even hear the sarcasm in Booth's voice. Booth turned back to an eagerly waiting Brennan.

"Would you look at that?" yelled Sweets, jumping to his feet, his voice so loud that two pairs of startled eyes swung his way.

"What?" demanded Brennan, looking around. Booth raised a questioning brow.

"The time," Sweets gestured toward his watch with a nervous laugh. "I'm sorry, guys, but I'm going to have to cut our session short today. I have an emergency appointment," he improvised desperately.

"But, I want to hear about Booth's weekend," Brennan protested.

"Sorry," Sweets offered insincerely, forgetting himself enough to grasp her arm, urge her to stand and herd her toward the door.

"I'll tell you later, Bones," Booth said from behind the horrified psychologist, his voice still filled with resolve.

"NO!" Sweets gasped, turning to Booth with his horror written all over his face. "I mean that you were absolutely correct, Booth. The zone of truth is the _only_ place to tell her," Sweets' eyes urgently pleaded with Booth to not do this. Booth's eyes narrowed and Sweets thought he was going to ignore him but Booth finally nodded curtly.

"Fine," he acknowledged, "we'll wait until our next session." Sweets almost sagged with relief.

"But, I don't want to wait," Brennan protested, easily pulling from Sweets grip and turning back to Booth who just shrugged as if she didn't have a choice.

"It's all right, Dr. Brennan, delayed gratification will actually teach you patience," Sweets soothed, barely aware of what he was saying as he, once again, took her arm, opened the door and practically thrust her outside.

"But," she protested again but Sweets ignored her and stepped back, putting a hand on Booth's back and giving him a nudge out the door.

"Okay, see you guys later." Without a second's hesitation, he shut the door in the gaping partner's faces. He leaned against the door in relief that he had just prevented a disaster of almost biblical proportion, then he realized what he had done and his eyes widened in horror. Seconds later, his lips started to twitch as he remembered the astonishment on Booth and Brennan's faces as he had expelled them from his office. Soon he was sliding down the door to sit on the floor, laughing so hard his legs would no longer support him. He knew he had big problems to figure out but he could work on that later. For the moment, he was just going to sit here and savor having had the last word with the couple, something that had never happened before and probably never would again.

Brennan stalked toward the elevator, head held high, her eyes straight ahead. Booth followed her more slowly, his hands buried in his pockets, his eyes on the floor. They waited silently side by side while the elevator emptied, then stepped inside, avoiding each other's eyes. Booth reached out and stabbed the button for the first floor, keeping his gaze straight ahead.

"Did you…?" Brennan's strangled voice faded out as she clamped a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles but it was too late. Booth heard her strangled laughter and his eyes moved from staring fixedly at the ceiling and met hers and they both erupted.

"Did you see his face?" she guffawed, laughing so hard she leaned against Booth for support.

"Yeah, baby, I saw his face," Booth chuckled, his eyes transfixed on Brennan's beautiful, laughing face. _God, he loved to hear her laugh, to see her relax and open herself up enough to enjoy the world around her._ His hand reached out and stroked her cheek lightly. "You were great," he praised, one arm pulling her closer.

"I know," Brennan replied happily, her arms sliding around Booth's waist and hugging him tightly. Booth chuckled heartily and shook his head, having learned to appreciate her lack of modesty more than ever over the last three days. "You were very good, too," she hastily told him, lest he think she didn't appreciate his efforts.

"Yeah?" he grinned, dropping his forehead against hers.

"Yes," she nodded enthusiastically, "although I was a little concerned that he wasn't going to stop you before you got to the sex part. What were you going to say?" They had, of course, discussed the scenario but Booth had been so sure Sweets would do whatever was necessary to stop him that they hadn't actually discussed that part.

"I would have told the truth," he said huskily. His hands cupped her face and his mouth lowered to hover over hers, "That I spent the weekend with the sexiest," his mouth brushed lightly over hers, "most beautiful woman in the world." His mouth brushed hers a little harder, lingering for just a second and her hands fisted in his shirt, her eyes darkening, her mouth following his as it lifted. "I would have said we didn't leave her bedroom and I intend to do it again every time I get the chance," he whispered, his mouth coming down hard and absorbing her moan as his lips opened hungrily over hers. Booth fought the urge to back her against the wall and let things get entirely out of hand but he managed to hold onto the thought of where they were and just enjoyed the feeling of her soft, yielding mouth under his.

Brennan couldn't remember where they were and she didn't care. Her arms crept up around Booth's neck and tightened, pulling him closer, her tongue darting into his mouth and teasing his then withdrawing, tempting his to follow. Groaning, Booth's tongue burrowed into her mouth, aggressively seeking out every sweet nook and crevice and exploring them thoroughly. Realizing things were getting out of control, he ripped his mouth away from hers, burying his face against her neck. Panting, his arms tightened and he held her tightly against his rigid body, wishing the elevator would malfunction and they could stay here all day.

"Maybe it's a good thing you didn't say that. I'm fairly certain that Sweets wouldn't have been fooled if we had done that in his office," Brennan's voice was husky. And deadly serious, sending Booth into an irrepressible spurt of laughter.

"You're probably right about that," he laughed, squeezing her tightly then reluctantly releasing her.

"I usually am," she returned placidly, knowing it would make him laugh and loving the sound of his laughter and the warm, fuzzy feeling it gave her inside. Booth did laugh, unable to help himself. He was still laughing when the elevator doors opened and he ushered Brennan out and toward the parking garage.

"You know what this means don't you?" he teased with a grin, pushing the door open for her to precede him into the garage. She thought for a moment, the satisfied smirk fading from her face to be replaced by the cute little furl between her eyebrows that made it apparent she didn't know.

"What?" she asked, turning wide, curious blue eyes toward him.

Grinning, he slipped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, leaning down to whisper the answer in her ear. "One down, three to go."


	21. Chapter 21

**Okay, guys, here you go. Next chapter. I apologize for the delay in replying to reviews but I am working on it. Please keep them coming. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth dropped Brennan off at the Jeffersonian, deciding that if he went in with her after the mind-blowing kiss she had just planted on him just because she could, they would never fool the sharp eyed Angela. Brennan grinned and kissed him again just for the hell of it. Ten minutes later, she breathlessly stepped out of the SUV and waved him off, turning and striding purposefully toward her lab. Booth watched her in bemusement, his entire body aching, wondering how in the hell she still got him so stirred up with a few kisses that he was ready to blow off work and drag her back to bed, especially after the weekend of sexual feasting they had just spent. _Better not think about that_, he told himself quickly but it was too late. Erotic images flooded his mind and he got even harder. Taking a deep breath, Booth leaned his head back against his seat, closing his eyes and searching for the control to forget about this weekend and concentrate on work. He didn't find it but he was enjoying the fantasy he did find when the sharp rapping on his window popped his eyes open.

Cam stood outside the SUV and studied Booth, biting her lip in indecision. She had spent more of the weekend than she had wanted to thinking about what Daisy had said Friday night and she was desperately trying to reconcile what she knew was good advice with her need to fix what she had broken. She just wasn't entirely sure how to do that. She knew she couldn't tell him about the group project to get him and Brennan together, she didn't even want to think about what he would do to the squints if he ever got wind of that so the only real option she had come up with was to tell Booth what she had done at the hospital and take his well deserved anger.

She was, at heart, a very straightforward person who generally spoke her mind and all this plotting and sneaking around was making her crazy. Not as crazy as the guilt slowly eating away at her guts but, still, she didn't need any more crazy in her life so she would simply tell him what she had done and take her punishment. _But was here and now really the right time to do it? _her cowardly side asked. The fact that Booth had obviously just dropped Brennan off and was silently sitting there looking like he was in physical pain because of the way things currently were between him and Brennan made her decision for her. Clearly, Friday night hadn't led to anything good so she no longer had a choice. Stiffening her spine and taking a deep breath for courage, Cam stepped forward and tapped on the window.

Booth looked up into the concerned face of Camille Saroyan and wanted to groan. He so didn't want to have a private conversation with her after the way she had been trying to corner him lately. His gut told him she was trying to come clean with him about what she had done to Brennan at the hospital following his surgery and he wasn't sure he could have that conversation without his rage at her hurting the woman he loved exploding. Brennan believed that Cam had done it to protect him and maybe that had been a very small part of it but Booth didn't believe it was the whole reason for a second. He knew Cam well enough to recognize the words and her manipulation of Brennan for the jealousy they were and he was unbelievably disappointed in one of his oldest friends.

Besides, her showing up at the club Friday night had convinced him that she was right in the middle of the squints' little plan and she had obviously learned nothing from her earlier stunt. For her to continue to feel like she had the right to interfere in his life in any way was simply unacceptable. Cam Saroyan needed to be taught a lesson just as much as the others and he and Brennan were going to make sure they all learned it well. But he could see the determination on Cam's face and rolled the window down with a sigh, knowing he didn't really have a choice but to at least speak to her.

"Are you all right, Booth?" Cam asked, nervousness vying with concern in her voice.

"I'm fine," Booth responded with a noticeable lack of warmth but Cam plowed forward anyway.

"Booth, I really need to talk to you," she said, cursing silently as his phone rang and he reached for it a little too eagerly making it all too apparent he really didn't want to talk to her. She was more hurt by that than she had thought possible but she was entirely responsible for most of his current problems even if he didn't know the full extent of it, she reminded herself stoutly, she really couldn't expect him to be all sweetness and light. Determined to wait his phone call out and spill her guts, she folded her arms across her chest and leaned a hip against the SUV.

"Booth." Booth barked into his phone, eying Cam's determined stance with irritation.

"Hey, Bro," laughed Jared. "Are you busy?"

"A little," sighed Booth, all the warm, okay hot, fuzzy feelings from just minutes earlier completely evaporating. "What do you need, Jared?"

"Why do you always assume I need something, Seeley? Can't I call just to talk to my big brother?"

"Yeah, right," Booth snorted. "What do you need, Jared?" he repeated, his waning patience clear.

"Okay, okay," laughed Jared, refusing to let Booth's typical attitude ruin his good mood. "Padme and I are going to be in DC for a couple of days and we were hoping to spend some time with you." Booth pinched the bridge of his nose to stem his instinctive rejection of Jared's request. He was trying very, very hard to be okay with Jared's choice of bride. He actually liked Padme and Jared seemed devoted to her. Actually, they seemed devoted to each other and their relationship. It was just difficult for Booth to forget a lifetime of rescuing Jared from his self destructive behavior and not be afraid his little brother was making yet another life altering mistake. _But you promised to stay out of it._ Yes, Booth had promised to stay out of it and he had no choice but to stand by that promise. Forcing a note of cheerfulness into his voice, he answered his waiting brother. "Sounds good, Jared. When?"

"We'll be there Thursday and Friday," Jared answered and Booth could hear the note of relief in Jared's voice that he hadn't said anything negative. That actually made him feel bad. Until his brother opened his mouth again. "You know, Seeley, this being in love stuff is pretty great. If you would get your head out of your ass and admit how you feel about Temperence, you could find out for yourself," Jared laughed. Booth's eyes narrowed and his temper snapped. He was getting pretty damned tired of everyone thinking they knew what was best for him and trying to manipulate him and Brennan into a relationship. He completely ignored the fact that they were all right and that he and Brennan were in a relationship as he gave his temper free reign.

"I expect the same courtesy from you that you insisted I extend to you, Jared. Stay the hell out of my personal life. I don't want or need your assistance and I can promise you that it won't be pretty if you make any attempt to push Bones and me together," he spoke very quietly and his voice was all the more chilling for that quietness. He had completely forgotten Cam's presence and his words were simply meant as a warning to keep his obnoxious brother from pulling any stupid stunts while he was in town but Cam felt each and every word like a body blow.

She blanched as she heard the very real threat underlying Booth's words. This was his beloved brother, the one person that she was certain he would forgive anything and Jared had only made some remark, not driven Brennan from Booth's side when he needed her the most, as she had done. Cam didn't hold out much hope that he would be that forgiving with her. _Oh, God, she couldn't do this, she couldn't tell him what she had done, couldn't stand for him to look at her like she was sure he would or speak to her in that cold, hard voice he was using with Jared. _She knew that she and Booth would never be romantically involved again but she treasured their friendship and just couldn't lay it on the line, not when he had just made his feelings so clear. She didn't know what she _was_ going to do but it definitely wasn't share her transgressions with Booth.

"I have to go," she gasped softly. Booth's eyes flew to her face and he did a double take, frowning at her paleness, wondering at the cause. Then he remembered his words to his brother and realized Cam must have taken note of those words and applied them to herself and for just a split second, he felt regret that he had caused his old friend emotional distress. Then he remembered the emotional pain she had caused Brennan and him in her selfishness and that regret faded to be replaced by satisfaction. He wasn't satisfied that he had hurt her, he just wasn't the type of man to take pleasure in something like that but he was satisfied that he had so inadvertently gotten his point across.

"Hold on, Jared," he spoke into the phone then gave Cam his full attention. "Are you all right, Cam?" he echoed her greeting to him.

"I'm fine," she gave him a rather sickly smile, "I have to go," she hastily turned away.

"I thought you wanted to talk to me," Booth queried.

"Umm, no, I just wanted to make sure you were okay," she was so eager to get away Booth almost laughed. He didn't think he would have to worry having any kind of conversation with her anytime soon but Brennan was going to kick his ass. She had especially been looking forward to messing with Cam. The squawking from his phone reminded him Jared was waiting.

"Okay, I'm back," he sighed, actually regretting his earlier harshness to his brother. "Jared, about what I said…," he began.

"Don't worry about it, Seeley. You're right. I can't expect you to stay out of my personal life if I mess with yours," Booth could hear the grin in Jared's voice and relaxed. "Besides, Padme really liked Temperence and was hoping that she would get the chance to get to know her better while we're in DC and I know that won't happen unless I promise to behave myself." Booth couldn't help but laugh at the wry humor in Jared's voice. Obviously his brother was now just as whipped as he was. _Good to know_.

"I'll let Bones know you're coming and see if she's free," Booth offered, knowing Brennan would free up some time if he asked her to. "But, Jared, I was serious about the no matchmaking part."

"Understood. So, I'll call you Wednesday with our arrival time and we'll make plans then. See ya," Jared returned cheerfully and so quickly that it was obvious he was ready for the conversation to be over.

"Sounds good. I'll talk to you then," Booth hung up, ready for the conversation to be over as well. It was time for him to get to work. Starting the SUV, he slowly drove out of the parking garage, beginning to grin as his mind went back over the previous few minutes. Booth had no doubt that he had gotten his point across to Jared and judging by the look on her face, it had been pretty damned effective with Cam even though it hadn't been aimed at her. In fact, he would be willing to bet those two would leave him and Brennan alone from here on out. _Damn, he was good_.

Brennan walked across the parking garage on shaking legs, telling herself the shivering, shaking need gripping her body would ease, that she could not turn around, walk back to the SUV and make love with Booth on the spot. It didn't help her settle down any that she could feel his eyes on her like a physical caress or that memories from the weekend were flooding her mind. _Dammit, they had to quit making out in the SUV like a couple of teenagers or they were definitely going to get caught._ Realizing that her hand was shaking as she reached for the door, she stepped aside and leaned back against the wall, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath to calm herself before entering her house of reason.

Angela approached her friend with a frown of concern on her face. Something had to be very, very wrong for Brennan to just be standing against the wall, making no attempt to enter the Jeffersonian. Brennan didn't just stand around. Ever. Taking a closer look, Angela noted that Brennan's face was flushed and her teeth were chewing on her lower lip, which was already swollen from the mistreatment. Her hair was in disarray as if she had been running her hands through it in agitation. _Oh, God, everything had been going so well Friday night that she had had high hopes of Booth and Brennan spending the weekend together. Even if they hadn't spent the weekend together, what could have happened in the meantime for Brennan to be so agitated and upset this morning? _

"Bren, Sweetie, are you okay?" Angela asked in concern, reaching out to touch Brennan's arm lightly.

Brennan's eyes popped open and she saw Angela standing directly in front of her with a sense of panic. Since neither of them were angry with Angela so much as exasperated, Booth had entrusted her with planting the seeds of messing with her best friend but this wasn't the scenario she had practiced. She could do this, she told herself fighting off the panic, just look at how well they had done with Sweets. The memory of the psychologist's comically stricken face calmed her. _Yeah, she could do this._

"I'm fine, Angela," she straightened from the wall and pulled the door open, entering the Jeffersonian with a narrow eyed Angela hot on her heels.

_Brennan didn't sound fine, she sounded sort of strangled and a little angry, _Angela decided. She knew she could just flat out ask what the problem was and would probably get an answer but she would get much more actual information by employing a little subtlety. Stepping up beside Brennan, Angela linked their arms. "Did you have a good weekend?" she asked with a grin.

"It was all right," Brennan shrugged but the words themselves being gritted out between clenched teeth told Angela there was a problem with the weekend.

"Did something bad happen this weekend, Bren?" Angela asked, a sense of dread settling in her stomach.

"I don't know," Brennan almost snarled. _Huh?_

"Wait. How can you not know what happened this weekend?" demanded Angela.

"Because Booth won't tell me," Brennan replied patiently, her look implying that Angela was a simpleton for not already knowing that. Angela might have been insulted but she was too confused by Brennan's words to notice the look.

"What?" Angela asked, frowning and following Brennan into her voice. "Bren, you're going to have to help me out here because I'm completely lost. Are you saying you and Booth didn't spend the weekend together?" Angela asked, still holding out hope that they had spent at least some time together this weekend.

"Angela, would I need Booth to tell me what happened this weekend if I was with him?" Brennan asked in exasperation, turning toward her desk so Angela couldn't see her face. She and Booth had decided it would be best for Brennan to actually prevaricate with Angela as little as possible and not look her in the eye while she did it. It wasn't actually a lie but Brennan wasn't taking any chances.

"I guess not?" Angela sighed, her disappointment keen. "So why won't Booth tell you what happened this weekend?"

"I don't know, Angela, _because Booth won't tell me_," Brennan reminded her friend and Angela frowned. This was one of the strangest conversations she had ever had in her life and, considering the number of conversations she had had with Brennan over the years, that was saying something. _She was beginning to smell a rat._ Brennan saw the artist's eyes narrow and knew she had just overplayed her role. "He was going to tell me but Sweets became quite agitated and ended our session early. He even escorted us out of his office," Brennan finished, putting as much irritation as she could muster in her voice.

Angela's eyes widened more with each word. Sweets followed Booth and Brennan around like a puppy dog. _What the hell would have made him throw them out of his office in an attempt to keep Booth from talking about it?_ Angela gasped out loud as realization hit her_. Oh my God, Booth had been about to tell Brennan about the other woman, in front of Sweets, no less._ Angela didn't know which part of that sentence made her angrier but if she had to pick it would be that Booth would actually tell Brennan he was sleeping with someone else. At least, she could be grateful that Sweets had had the good sense to stop the stupid man before he ruined all their well laid plans.

Brennan watched with interest as Angela began to pace and mutter under her breath in her agitation. She could only catch a few words here and there but it didn't sound complimentary to Booth so Brennan knew Angela had figured out what Booth had supposedly been going to tell her. Leaning back against her chair, she crossed her hands over her stomach and fought a grin. According to Booth, if you were messing with someone and they got suspicious, your best bet was to deflect their attention elsewhere and Brennan had to admit, it was working remarkably well.

Angela suddenly became aware of what she was doing and forced herself to stop in front of Brennan's desk. "I'm sure it was nothing, Sweetie," she soothed with a rather sickly smile, "and if Sweets thinks you should wait until your next session to talk about it, that's probably best," Angela knew she was babbling but she was desperate to convince Brennan not to ask Booth about it until she could talk to Booth and convince him that Brennan didn't need to know about his sexual exploits with another woman.

"It wouldn't do me any good to ask him, anyway," Brennan sighed in disappointment. "He promised Sweets he wouldn't tell me until Friday," she answered to Angela's arched brow and Angela almost sagged in relief. That left her four days to talk to Booth or come up with a way to stop him from breaking her best friend's heart if he wouldn't listen. She needed to call a group meeting and get started on that immediately, she decided, they didn't have a moment to waste if Booth was about to make such an idiot move.

"Okay, then, I'll see you later," Angela said absently, pulling her phone out of her pocket and frantically tapping keys as she exited Brennan's office.

"Bye," Brennan called after her retreating form, not even bothering to hide her smile. Angela would be far too busy for a while to notice she was smiling more than usual. For a split second, Brennan found how much she had enjoyed messing with her best friend a little disturbing but it didn't last long. Then she was simply flush with her success. _She had known she had a steep learning curve but, damn, she was good. _


	22. Chapter 22

**Okay, guys, the strategy meeting didn't go exactly as I had expected. Muise was a bit angsty today. Let me know what you think. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**Bribe: Plenty of reviews might get you smut in the next chapter.**

Angela paced the confines of the storage room, impatiently waiting for her partners in crime to make an appearance. After their first couple of meetings, they had unanimously decided to move their meetings from Cam's office to a more discreet location to lessen the chance of being overheard and this out of the way storage room had been it. _What the hell was taking them so long? Did they not understand what 911 meant? Dammit, they had a serious problem and she needed some help here._

Hodgins was the first to arrive, his eyes darting around to make sure he hadn't been followed. Stealthily approaching the door, he raised his hand and gave the series of short raps he had insisted on being their signal to each other without bothering to try the doorknob. Inside the room, Angela rolled her eyes and stalked toward the door, in no doubt of who stood on the other side. _Hodgins and his freaking conspiracy theories_, she fumed. He had come up with the knocking to keep them from being infiltrated. _How the hell was someone supposed to infiltrate their rather limited group without them noticing?_ Pushing the random thought aside, she jerked open the unlocked door and glared at Hodgins, letting him know she didn't need any of his crap today.

"Oookay," he murmured, raising his hands in supplication and quickly scooting past her to enter the room lest they be noticed by someone passing by. "Close the door, Ange," he urged. Angela rolled her eyes at the urgency in his voice but she closed the door and turned to face him. "Where are Cam and Sweets?" he asked curiously. He had been running an experiment that he couldn't leave when he had gotten Angela's message so he knew he was late which meant Cam and Sweets were very, very late.

"I don't know," Angela admitted, biting her lower lip. She had no idea why everyone had been so slow to respond to her summons. Hodgins had some idea. Given their quick departure Friday night, he was very much afraid that the words of Daisy Wicks had resonated a little too clearly with Cam and Sweets. He wouldn't he at all surprised to find out that the pair wanted out and were simply avoiding having to tell Angela that by not showing up. On the other hand, they could simply be unable to stop whatever they were doing and attend this impromptu meeting but he doubted it.

Hodgins had used the weekend to make his own peace with what they were doing. He felt terrible over the damage he had inadvertently done to Sweets' and Daisy's relationship and he had tried to call them both over the weekend to apologize again but neither answered his calls. So, he had simply sent them both formal letters of apology, knowing that it would feel more real in the written rather than the spoken form. He had also sent Daisy three dozen roses from Sweets since the guy obviously needed all the help he could get and had hoped she would buy it. She hadn't. She had stopped him in the lab this morning, acknowledging his letter and thanking him for the flowers. When he had tried to plead Sweets' case, she had simply said she didn't want to talk about it but she was no longer angry at him. Hodgins knew he had probably let it go a little too easily but he hadn't wanted to take the chance of upsetting her again and her changing her mind about ratting them out.

He had even seriously considered Daisy's warnings and knew she had some good points. They _all_ had some ulterior motive for wanting to see Booth and Brennan make it work. He had taken a long, hard look at his and decided that Angela didn't deserve his anger since most of it was self directed for being stupid enough to let her go then not wanting to break her celibacy kick and just be her rebound guy. He wanted so much more than that with her but he had been scared. Scared to get hurt again and she was with Wendell now because he hadn't had the guts to just step up and tell her what he wanted. He didn't like the situation but, since it was his own fault, he could hardly cry foul at this juncture. The only thing he could do was bide his time and be there for the woman he knew in his heart was destined to be his for eternity.

That conclusion had brought him full circle and he had had to decide whether he was comfortable continuing with their scheming to get Booth and Brennan together. To his surprise, it wasn't as simple as a yes or no. He honestly didn't see anything wrong in them putting their friends together in situations outside work. Where was the harm in that? _Okay, fine, he had suffered a pang or three of guilt when he had thought of this unknown girlfriend but, hey, if there was nothing between Booth and Brennan then she had nothing to worry about, right? And if there was something there, wasn't it better to know about it before things got serious between Booth and said woman?_ So, in a really twisted way, they were doing the girlfriend a big favor by testing Booth's fidelity._ Okay, that had sounded a lot better at 3AM when he was very drunk, but still, it was a valid point_, he insisted to himself stubbornly.

At 4AM, he had finally admitted that this whole internal debate was pointless, he could continue to come up with ridiculous reasons to justify his continued participation or he could admit the real one, at least to himself. He would be continuing to help Angela in her little scheme because it would make her happy and the bottom line was that her happiness was the most important thing in the world to him. Of course, he might also be able to keep her out of jail by watching her back and nixing some of her more outlandish schemes and if he couldn't keep her from wandering into the illegal, he could always afford a good lawyer.

"Where are they?" snapped Angela in irritation, checking her watch and pacing furiously. Hodgins knew this wasn't a particularly good time to introduce the possibility of Sweets and Cam bailing on them to the agitated artist but he really didn't see that he had a choice.

"Angela, they might not be coming," he said softly.

"What? Why wouldn't they come?" she gasped in outrage, turning on Hodgins with a look that told him not to mess with her. "Why wouldn't they come, Hodgins?" she demanded, advancing on him with narrowed, evil eyes.

"Umm," he swallowed hard and started to back up just as the door opened and Cam slipped inside. "Oh, thank God," he breathed in relief as Angela shot him a glare and turned toward Cam. Before she could say anything, there was a tentative knock at the door, not the knock he had instituted, Hodgins noted in frustration as he stalked toward the door, knowing who was on the other side. Jerking the door open, he didn't even pause. "Would you hurry up?" he grumbled, reaching out, grabbing Sweets by the tie and yanking him into the room, slamming and locking the door behind him.

"Was that really necessary?" gasped Sweets, his fingers busily trying to loosen the knot in the tie so it was no longer strangling him.

"Apparently," answered Hodgins drily.

"Where have you two been?" Angela demanded angrily, eyeing Sweets and Cam. It was the first time the four of them had been in the same room, much less spoken since Friday night and Hodgins knew instantly that Cam was out. Her eyes darted around the room, looking at everything but her three companions and she looked supremely uncomfortable. Sweets, he wasn't so sure about. The younger man looked like he didn't want to be here but he wasn't avoiding their eyes.

Sweets didn't want to be here. Because he still wasn't entirely sure what he was going to do. He had caught a glimpse of Daisy as he walked through the lab and he had wanted to walk over and tell her he was out just so she wouldn't think badly of him anymore. But he hadn't been able to think about anything except how Brennan was going to react when Booth told her he was sleeping with someone else since he had thrown them out of his office this morning. He could actually see her face, the pain and betrayal in her eyes and it was killing him to know he was at least partially responsible. Burying his hands in his pockets, Sweets glanced around the room, his eyes narrowing as they came to rest on Cam who was standing apart from the group, her arms across her chest, avoiding everyone's eyes. Sweets looked at Cam's closed posture and came to the same conclusion as Hodgins. Raising a brow at Hodgins, he glanced from Cam to Angela. Easily able to follow this shorthand, Hodgins gave a barely perceptible shake of his head. Sweets eyes widened and he swallowed hard. _Oh, crap, this wasn't going to be pretty when Angela figured it out . _

"Ange, why don't you tell us why you called the meeting?" Hodgins encouraged, hoping to avoid the eruption of Mt. St. Angela by encouraging the artist to release some angst before Cam revealed her defection. Sweets thought that was a wise decision. Until she turned that angst on him.

"The better question would be why didn't Sweets here call this meeting," Angela snapped, crossing her arms and stalking toward the psychologist.

"What did I do?" demanded a stunned, slightly scared Sweets as she marched right up to him. He was even more stunned when she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly but he didn't object. Not so to the sharp poke in the chest she gave him when she pulled back. "Hey, what was that for?" he demanded, rubbing his chest.

Hodgins was wondering the same damned thing. He didn't care if Angela stood there and poked Sweets all day. In fact, he would volunteer his services as an assistant in that endeavor but the hugs he could do without.

"The hug was for not letting Booth tell Brennan about his weekend. The poke was for not letting us know there was a problem," she informed him.

"Angela, you know I can't discuss what happens in sessions," Sweets protested, knowing that was one line he wasn't willing to cross, even to salve his conscious or to get Daisy back.

"We're a team here, Sweets, and this is never going to work if we hold out on each other," she told him firmly, turning on the charm and batting her lashes at him. Hodgins didn't much like that either but his eyes narrowed as he saw Angela shoot the silent Cam a look out of the corner of her eye. _Ah, he had been wrong. Angela had guessed that Cam was about to jump ship and was trying the subtle approach to stop it from happening, Sweets was simply a tool to her process._

"What happened this weekend?" asked Hodgins, curious now that his jealousy was waning.

"What part of I can't tell you don't you understand, Hodgins?" Sweets asked in exasperation.

"Booth was going to tell Brennan about his girlfriend," Angela said at the same time, her voice hard with displeasure.

"What?" gasped Hodgins, his heart sinking at the information. If Booth had been about to come clean about the other woman with his partner, then the relationship must be more important to him than any of them had realized. "What else?" Hodgins' narrowed eyes bored into Sweets as the psychologist began to shift from foot to foot in discomfort. Sweets' lips tightened and he shook his head.

"Come on, Sweets, we need to know," Angela cajoled with a smile. When that got no response, she pulled out the big guns. "None of this would be happening if _certain people_ hadn't decided to interfere in Booth and Brennan's life and convince them that they don't belong together," her voice and eyes were no longer cajoling, they were hard and demanding, letting Sweets know she meant business. She didn't bother to hide the look of censure she sent in Cam's direction either. "So don't you dare stand there and act all superior, Sweets, because we all know better. Now spill," Angela snapped, the anger she had thought she had gotten under control over the weekend over Cam's little stunt rising to the surface and spilling over onto Sweets.

Sweets wanted to protest but Angela's words so closely mirrored his feelings that he didn't even bother to refute them but he _could not_ betray privilege. Maybe he wouldn't have to, he thought, suddenly knowing he was still in this thing until the bitter end. "Think about it, Angela. What could Booth have done all weekend that Dr. Brennan shouldn't know about?" Sweets asked, wiggling his eyebrows so exaggeratedly that Angela would have been amused if she hadn't been enraged as the answer hit her.

"_HE WAS GOING TO TELL HER ABOUT A WEEKEND SEXATHON WITH THE HOMEWRECKER?"_ She yelled incredulously, unable to believe the cruelty or stupidity inherent in that act. Sweets didn't say a word, neither confirming nor denying and they all knew Angela was right.

"Oh My God," gasped Cam, dropping her head into her cupped hands. She had no idea what she was even doing in this room. She had made her decision this morning in the parking lot. She was out of this mess. She had gotten Angela's page and had felt strangely compelled to answer it, the need to fix what she had broken dragging at her, even as Booth's earlier words of warning echoed in her head. She had dawdled as long as she could force herself, all the while hoping the meeting would be over by the time she got there and she wouldn't have to face the people to whom she had revealed her deepest, darkest shame. She had hoped not to have to face their anger over what she had revealed Friday night and her opting out of their group. Since her arrival, she had simply listened, biding her time until she could gracefully withdraw from the plotting but Angela's attitude told her that time was going to be never. And, in her opinion, Booth making the decision to tell Brennan about the other woman meant game over. Even if she wanted to continue to make amends by throwing then together, her chance was now lost. _She would eventually learn to live with the guilt_, she told herself stoically, straightening from the wall and silently heading for the door, just wanting to escape.

"Where are you going?" Angela demanded, unable to believe that the woman mostly responsible for this entire mess was simply abdicating her responsibility to fix it.

"I can't do this, Angela," Cam replied, still avoiding everyone's eyes but her steps never faltered. Her hand resting on the doorknob, Cam sighed deeply and decided to give the rest of them some well intentioned advice. Whether they took it or not was up to them. "And I would advise the rest of you to leave it alone, as well. It's over, people, and we have to accept that."

Angela couldn't believe to sheer nerve of the woman, never mind the absolute absurdity that she would think any of them would listen to her advice about this particular situation. She looked at the woman she had come to regard as a friend and her rage at every hateful, hurtful thing Cam had ever done to Brennan, her fear that the other woman was right, her dissatisfaction with the way she was handling her own life, everything negative that she was feeling coalesced and focused on Cam. The eruption of Mt. St. Angela began. "Why do you hate her so much?" Angela queried, honestly wanting to know. Crossing her arms over her chest, she stared at Cam's back with laser like intensity.

"Excuse me?" Cam turned to Angela, meeting her eyes for the first time since she had entered the room. Angela looked at the I am the boss stance and the lifted brow and was less than impressed. She hadn't always had her best friend's back in the past but that was about to change. She had a few things to get off her chest and couldn't think of a better time to do it.

"Well, let's face it, Cam, you've been trying to get Brennan out of the picture with Booth ever since you walked through the front door. This must be your dream come true." Cam was stunned at the disdain dripping from Angela's voice and how much the words hurt.

"That's not true, Angela," she gasped, so taken aback by the accusation that she didn't even think to deny that she hated Brennan.

"Oh, please," Angela snorted. "You wanted to fire her the instant she didn't bend to your will and when you figured out Booth would choose her if he had to make a choice between the two of you, you started sleeping with him. Was that to get him on your side or just for the pleasure of causing her pain?"

_A little bit of both_, Cam admitted to herself. Despite her denials, she had been harboring some hope that she and Booth would rekindle their romance and she had been livid and hurt that Booth had made his allegiance to the anthropologist so clear. Yes, she had been extremely attracted to Booth and she had known it was professionally questionable to sleep with him so soon after her arrival but she had also known it would hurt Brennan and, to her shame, that had been a big part of the draw. Even though it wasn't Brennan's fault Booth had chosen her, Cam had felt the need to punish her for it. _How could she deny it now?_ She couldn't and her silence spoke for her.

Sweets gaped. He knew about the relationship between Cam and Booth but hadn't been around back then so he'd had no idea of the underlying motives. Hodgins stared at Cam in shock. He had been around but he hadn't seen the things Angela apparently had. He lost a lot of respect for Cam on the spot. Angela wasn't at all surprised, but she was ashamed that she had treated it so lightly at the time, not offering Brennan the support she should have.

"Angela, I don't hate Brennan," Cam said quietly, rubbing her forehead where a pounding headache was setting up residence.

"Really? So what you said to her when Booth was in the hospital was what, Cam? Your way of showing her how much you really, really care about her?" Angela's sarcasm stung and Cam's spine stiffened.

"I don't owe you an explanation, Angela," she returned stiffly, knowing that wasn't entirely true.

"Maybe not, but I'll bet Booth would be interested in one," Angela snapped.

"Are you threatening me?" Cam's voice iced over as she straightened and stepped toward Angela.

"Are you threatened by Booth finding out that you told Brennan to leave him after major surgery and that he could never love her, Cam?" Angela mocked, also stepping forward.

"Whoa," drawled Hodgins, smoothly stepping between the two women and throwing Sweets a wide eyed help me look.

"You two need to calm down and think about what you're saying for a minute," Sweets advised, his training kicking in despite his distress at seeing Angela and Cam ready to go for each other's throats. "We can go somewhere and sit down and calmly talk this out," he offered, his voice gaining confidence.

"Shut up, Sweets," they replied simultaneously, both reaching out and pushing Hodgins to the side so they were once again face-to-face staring at each other in tense silence, both trying to rein in their tempers.

"So what's the plan now, Cam? Are you going to do the same thing to the other woman in Booth's life, hurt her until she runs away, until you think you have another chance with him? Does it even matter to you that he'll never love anyone as much as he loves Brennan?" Angela taunted, tears of fury and helplessness blinding her to the shocked look on Cam's face.

Cam felt hammered by her emotions as Angela's words hauntingly reminded her of the ones she had used to taunt Brennan into going to Guatemala. She felt only a fraction of the pain she knew she must have caused the anthropologist on that day, yet it was enlightening and almost debilitating. And it must have been even worse for Booth, lost and confused after his surgery, only wanting the one person that Cam had taken pains to assure would not be there with him. _Oh, God, what had she done?_ Her anger at Angela instantly dissolved to be replaced by shame and self disgust. She deserved every judgmental word coming out of the other woman's mouth.

"Why, Cam? Why would you try to take the one person in the world that she loves and trusts enough to have a chance at making a life with away from her? Do you really hate her that much? " Angela whispered, tears streaking her face.

"I don't hate her at all, Angela," Cam said softly, reaching a tentative hand out and laying it on the artist's arm, encouraged when Angela didn't slug her or pull away. "To tell you the truth, right now the only person I hate is myself." Cam's grandmother had always told her that confession was good for the soul and she was about to put that theory to the test. "I was jealous," she admitted, ashamed to her very essence that she had let such a juvenile emotion control her actions and cause so much damage. "I was horrible and cruel and vicious and self serving. I only thought about what I wanted. I didn't care if Brennan got hurt in the process," she admitted, determined to be honest since she was confessing her sins.

"You decided to ruin two people's lives because you were jealous?" Hodgins demanded incredulously.

"Yes, Hodgins, I was jealous," Cam snapped, for some reason feeling like she deserved Angela's wrath but not so much with Hodgins. "And I made a mistake, a big mistake, but I'm not the only one around here doing that lately, now am I?" she asked and Hodgins suddenly found his feet very interesting after a quick glance in Sweets direction. "I honestly didn't intend to ruin anyone's life and, believe me, I would take it back if I could," Cam finished with a sigh, surprised that she actually did feel a little better. She just didn't expect it to last long as she dropped her head and waited for the uproar to begin. It never happened.

"I believe that you regret your actions, Cam," Sweets offered supportively, "but, in this situation, there are no take backs. You must know that your only real option is to talk to Booth and explain what you did." Cam did know that but she didn't think she could do it after she had overheard Booth with Jared. She was saved from trying to explain that when Mt St. Angela finally blew.

"To hell with Booth!" she yelled, looking at her three companions incredulously. _Did they really not understand the depth of damage, the utter wrongness of what had been done to Brennan or did they just not care? _"Booth seems to be doing fine if he can have a weekend sexathon and then tell Brennan all about it on Monday," she snapped at the three gaping people in front of her. Despite their familiarity with Booth's reluctance to discuss private matters in public, none of them questioned that Booth had been willing to do just that. "What about Brennan?" she demanded. "Everyone in her entire life whom she has ever loved or trusted has walked away from her. Do you honestly think she won't see herself as being replaced in Booth's life by his new bimbo? Can you imagine how that's going to make her feel? Do you think talking about it will make her feel all better, too, Sweets?" Angela demanded, turning on the psychologist in her helpless frustration.

She received no answers from anyone. There was complete silence in the room but they were all thinking the same thing. Angela was absolutely correct, if Booth told Brennan about the other woman, they could kiss their hopes of getting the two of them together goodbye. It would absolutely break the anthropologist's heart and, no, none of them thought talking about it would ever make her feel better but none of them knew what to do about it.


	23. Chapter 23

**Musie was more playful on this one so I hope it makes up for the angst but we didn't get to full on smut. It is in the next chapter. I promise. Thanks for the reviews and keep them coming. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Hey, Bones," said Booth jovially, entering Brennan's office Wednesday night. "Hi, Wendell," he greeted the intern and made his way to Brennan's couch, dropping down on it with a sigh. It was after 7 and he was tired and hungry and ready to go home. Thankfully, it appeared as if Wendell and Brennan were the only two left in the place.

"Hi, Booth," Wendell grinned then turned his attention back to Brennan.

"This is excellent, Wendell," Brennan praised the young intern. Booth muffled a laugh at the way the young man's chest swelled with pride at the compliment.

"Thank you, Dr. Brennan," Wendell took the papers Brennan held out. "Well, I guess I'll be heading out then. Goodnight, Dr. Brennan, Booth," the intern shot Booth another grin and was out the door, automatically pulling the door closed behind him.

Brennan stood up and slowly walked toward her Booth, her hips swaying seductively. "Hi," she said softly, dropping down onto the couch beside him, her head drifting down to rest against his shoulder with a sigh of contentment.

His arm automatically encircled her shoulders and his body turned until she was lying against his chest, her head tipped up toward him, her eyes full of sultry invitation. An invitation he couldn't resist. "Hi, yourself," his head dipped and his mouth settled over hers, his lips gently nudging hers apart and his tongue lazily tracing the inside of her lower lip. When her tongue darted out and rubbed against the tip of his, he was suddenly no longer tired but he was very, very hungry.

Groaning, his hand moved to the back of her head and he deepened the kiss, his lips becoming less lazy and much more aggressive, his tongue sweeping into her mouth and laying claim. With a moan, Brennan arched her neck and twined her tongue with his. Her arms wrapped around his waist, her hands flattening against his back, holding him to her, scraping up and down his spine, making his blood quicken and his body swell to instant hot, hard readiness.

Booth's fingers feathered down her neck, sliding across her chest until his hand closed around her breast, his mouth becoming harder and even more demanding against hers. With a shudder and a whimper as her belly tightened and her thighs softened with a flood of need, Brennan strained against him, pressing her breast against his palm, her body aching for his touch.

A low growl rumbled in his chest and his thumb feathered her hard nipple before his fingers closed around the turgid peak, rolling and tweaking. Brennan moaned into Booth's avid mouth and tried to get closer, her arousal building so quickly that it might have been frightening if the same thing didn't happen every time he touched her. And that arousal became a burning, aching need as his hand drifted down, skimming her stomach and moving lower.

Suddenly remembering where they were, Booth desperately tore his mouth away from hers, forcing his hand to halt its downward progression and reaching for the control to keep this from getting completely out of hand. Then his eyes fell on Brennan's face. Her eyes were heavy lidded and cloudy with desire, her mouth was ripe and lush, swollen and red from his kisses and when her tongue smoothed across her bottom lip, he felt raw, aching hunger that completely obliterated his good sense slam through him. His big body shifted and turned on the couch, rolling her underneath him, his hand stroking her abdomen and his mouth returning to hers with slow, sexy nibbles and sweeps of his tongue that belied the urgency gripping his body.

Moaning, Brennan wrapped her arms around Booth's neck, trying to pull him closer, wanting to feel his body crushing her into the couch, craving harder contact with his mouth, needing to feel his tongue plunging into her mouth. With a husky laugh, he resisted her urging and continued the teasing, barely there contact with her mouth, his body brushing hers just as lightly. _So, he wanted to play, did he?_

With a sultry laugh that sent shivers down Booth's spine, Brennan's arms slowly released their hold on his neck and her hands slid to his shoulders, then to the buttons of his shirt. Slowly slipping the buttons from the holes, her hands moved to warm, hard flesh, smoothing down over his hard pecs, her nails scraping his hardening nipples over and over again. Groaning, Booth's mouth settled firmly against hers, nudging her lips apart as his hand slipped under her blouse, caressing her quivering abdomen and moving higher. Wanting, needing, more Brennan's tongue stroked into his mouth seeking out and tangling with his.

Booth was barely holding himself in check, the need to be inside of her clawing at his gut, making it almost impossible to go slow and savor her the way he wanted to. Then her left leg lifted and wrapped around his hard thigh and she used the leverage to lift her hips and grind her mound against his pulsing erection at the same time she captured his wandering tongue between her lips and sucked hard. With a deep, rumbling growl, Booth's body slammed into hers, pushing her deeply into the sofa and his mouth became voracious and demanding, his hands everywhere at once, popping open buttons and revealing soft, silky skin to his seeking touch. Whimpering, Brennan opened her mouth and her body twisted under his seeking even closer contact.

"OH MY GOD!!"

The near supersonic screech brought Booth's head up but it took several seconds for him to focus on the stunned woman standing in Brennan's office, both hands clamped over her mouth and staring at them with eyes that looked like they were about to pop out of her head. Booth didn't know whether to laugh at the comical sight or cry because of the interruption but he had no such mixed feelings about the fact that he and Brennan were well and truly busted. _They needed to do some damage control and fast. _

"Miss Wick, could you give us a minute?" Brennan asked calmly, making no attempt to scramble into a sitting position as most people in a similar situation would have done. She didn't even considering trying to mislead Daisy about what she had seen. It would be pointless and insulting to everyone involved. She wasn't ashamed of her and Booth and no one could possibly misinterpret what they had been doing on that couch. All they could do was ask Daisy to keep it quiet for the time being.

"Oh my God, Dr. Brennan," Daisy gasped, spinning around and slapping her hands over her eyes so hard she winced and saw stars, belatedly realizing she should have done that as soon as she had seen them on the couch. _Well, all she could do now was damage control. _ "I am so, so, so sorry. I knocked and I thought I heard someone say come in but it must have been one of you..," It suddenly struck her that mentioning moaning right now might not be the best idea and Daisy clamped one hand back over her mouth before she made the situation worse, if that was possible. _Crap_, _she had simply returned to the lab to pick up her forgotten cell phone and drawn by the light in Brennan's office, decided to stop by and say goodnight and now she would be lucky to still have a job when she walked back out the door. God, she so didn't need any more problems right now._ She was still reeling over the breakup with Sweets engineered by Hogins to generate scenes just like the ones she had witnessed, she suddenly recalled, the fury she had never released over that rising to the surface and boiling over.

"That is just so unfair," Daisy muttered to herself, not at all pleased that the plan that had caused her suffering and she had shot down had apparently worked so damn well.

Booth sat up and pulled Brennan to a sitting position, lifting a brow at the muttering, pacing intern who was careful to keep her back to them, even in her agitation. Shrugging, Brennan turned her attention to redoing the buttons on her shirt that Booth had gotten undone, having seen so much unusual behavior from Daisy that she wasn't at all surprised by this. Keeping a cautious eye on the younger woman, Booth hastily rebuttoned his shirt. "What are we going to do about this, Bones?" He asked Brennan as she finished straightening her appearance.

"I'll take care of this, Booth," she assured him confidently, smoothing back her hair and standing. She still looked tousled and sexy as hell but she also looked like Dr. Temperence Brennan was back in charge and he was content to let her take the lead, especially with another squint. "Ms. Wick," Brennan called.

"I cannot freaking believe that such an asinine plan conceived by spawns of Satan really worked," Daisy muttered, her voice gaining in volume, not even hearing Brennan call to her. "It's just wrong that they get exactly what they wanted and what do I get?"

"Ms. Wick," Brennan raised her voice and stepped closer but Daisy didn't even pause in her pacing or her ranting.

"I get to not have a boyfriend anymore because a bunch of idiots decided to play God. But do I let them all have it like they deserved?" Booth's fascinated gaze followed the furiously muttering young woman, noting that she was clearly answering her own questions when she didn't even pause in her ranting. "No, I took the high ground. I've kept my mouth shut and done my job so I wouldn't get fired but, thanks to the idiots, now I'm going to get fired anyway. This is so freaking unfair."

"Daisy!" Brennan yelled.

"What?" Daisy yelled right back, furiously spinning to face Brennan. Booth's eyes widened as he saw the way Brennan drew herself up, stiffly crossed her arms over her chest and her brow slowly rose, every inch the affronted scientist. _Uh oh, trouble brewing._ But he didn't try to step in, trusting Brennan to handle it. Besides, if his interpretation of Daisy's rambling conversation with herself was even slightly correct, the intern deserved to vent a little. He did have several questions about what, exactly, Daisy knew but they could wait until Brennan did her thing.

"Oh my God, Dr. Brennan, I'm so sorry," wailed Daisy, her earlier fury deflating and leaving a sagging, defeated young woman in its place and Brennan's stance immediately softened.

"Sit down, Daisy," Brennan offered more than ordered, motioning toward a chair.

"I don't need to sit down to get fired," Daisy said wearily. "I'll just go," she sighed, turning for the door.

"I'm not firing you, Daisy," Brennan assured her, reaching out and catching the younger woman's arm. "But I would like to speak with you. Sit down. Please." Daisy sat and stared at her reserved, often inpatient boss, not sure she had ever heard the word please come out of her mouth before. Considering the way her life had been going lately, she didn't necessarily find it reassuring that the word had been directed at her. Daisy was sure she knew what was coming and she found the thought of Brennan trying to gain her silence about what she had seen by either bribery or threats equally disillusioning.

"I won't tell anyone, Dr. Brennan. You don't have to threaten me," Daisy offered, the beginnings of that disillusionment clear in her voice. Brennan blinked at the younger woman, the thought of threatening Daisy to gain her cooperation never having entered her mind. Her mind just didn't work that way and she was shocked and a little curious as to why Daisy's did.

"Thank you for agreeing to refrain from gossip, Daisy." Booth almost laughed at Brennan's off hand reference to them getting busted in such a compromising situation as gossip. It was, but it was also the juiciest little tidbit to hit DC in years and most of the people at the Jeffersonian and the FBI would be salivating over hearing the titillating details. Booth was seriously impressed at the way Brennan was handling Daisy, so impressed that he was beginning to think maybe they weren't screwed after all.

"You're welcome, Dr. Brennan," Daisy said a little too eagerly, only just realizing what she had said in her rant. Looking at Brennan, she didn't think the anthropologist had put it together and she was too afraid to look in Booth's direction and see if he had understood the significance of what she was saying. She just wanted to get out of here, go home, eat a pint of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream and contemplate the declining state of her life. _Good times_. Her hopes of doing so immediately were shattered by Brennan's next words.

"Why would you think I would use coercion to gain your cooperation?" Brennan asked, her voice ripe with curiosity that didn't completely cover the insult she felt that anyone would think she would choose that course of action.

"I..I..Um..I..," Daisy's stuttered, having no ready answer. Well, not one that wouldn't get her in even more hot water anyway.

"Who threatened you, Daisy? And with what?" Booth asked softly, coming to stand behind Brennan, his hand resting on her shoulder. He was sure he knew part of the answer but he needed confirmation to believe the scheming foursome would actually have carried it that far. Playing games with him and Brennan was one thing but dragging one of the interns into it and making threats was something else entirely. Daisy looked into soft, concerned brown eyes and wanted to tell him everything so badly she bit her lip to keep the whole awful, strange story from pouring out.

"What?" gasped Brennan, "Someone threatened one of my interns?" she growled, her head turning to pin Booth with snapping blue eyes, shocked at the surge of anger that thought brought forth in her. As irritating as she personally found Daisy, she was one of hers and, therefore, it was unacceptable for someone to take advantage of her that way. "Who?" she demanded, her eyes narrowing furiously.

"Not me," Booth felt compelled to point out at Brennan's surprising displeasure with the situation. "Think about it, Bones." He urged. "Who would have something to gain by threatening Daisy?"

"I don't know, Booth," she snapped, rising from her chair and stepping up until they were toe to toe. "If I did, I wouldn't need you to tell me, now would I?"

"Sarcasm, Bones?" Booth couldn't resist teasing, feeling the urge to get her even more riled up. It made him hotter than hot when she got all snarky and snappy and he forgot they weren't alone. "I don't think I will tell you if you're going to be like that about it," he continued in a very superior voice that he knew she would take as a challenge. Her eyes narrowed and she stepped closer, also forgetting about their visitor.

"Oh, I think you'll tell me, Booth. One way or the other," she taunted, reaching out to run a finger down his chest.

"Oh, yeah? Take your best shot, baby," he offered, opening his arms wide, his eyes inviting her to do her worst.

"You couldn't handle my best shot, Booth," she scoffed, planting her hands on her hips to keep them off of him.

"Try me," he invited, leaning down until they were nose to nose, not even trying to keep the sexy invitation from his voice.

Daisy's eyes widened as she watched the interaction, the warm fuzzy feeling Brennan's protective attitude had generated slowly being replaced by confusion then suspicion. The partners had completely dismissed her presence but it wasn't really unusual for them to withdraw into their own little world and dismiss everyone else. No, it was the utter intimacy between them and how comfortable they were with it that lit the proverbial light bulb. _No freaking way had these two been together less than a week. Hodgins had broken her and Sweets up to get two people who were already together together. That was sad and pathetic and entirely hilarious, she realized as giggles overtook her._ Booth and Brennan turned toward her, the looks on their faces feeding her laughter. She thought of everything that had happened Friday night and how miserable her lonely weekend had been and within seconds, she was squirming in her chair, guffawing so hard that tears were streaking down her cheeks. Only she knew they weren't entirely tears of hilarity.

Brennan looked at Booth for assistance, even she could see that Daisy was just a tad out of control emotionally and she had no idea how to calm her down.

"Daisy," Booth said softly, squatting beside the laughing young woman and laying his hand on her arm, hoping to calm her. "Are you okay?" he asked gently. Brennan pulled her chair closer and sat down. Following Booth's lead, she leaned over and touched Daisy's arm. Amazingly, that did calm the almost hysterical young woman. "Wow, Bones, you're the Squint Whisperer," Booth whispered, waiting for Daisy's giggles to cease so they could get to the bottom of this.

"I don't know what that means," she whispered back.

"I'll explain later," he promised.

"I'm okay now," Daisy spoke up, almost hating to interrupt their wonky conversation. These two always had something to say to each other and it was frequently entertaining. And she needed that right now because, despite her assertion to the contrary, she was far from okay. She was hurt and angry and missed having Sweets in her life and she wanted someone to pay for the fact that their breakup had been for nothing. Since she didn't see how she could really blame Booth and Brennan, that left the group of coconspirators as the focus of her vengeance.

"Why don't you tell us what this is all about, Daisy?" Booth suggested, standing and leaning back against Brennan's desk.

"Sure," Daisy conceded, not feeling even a tiny bit of guilt for breaking her promise to those four. "Your _friends _decided that they could run your lives better then you can. They want the two of you together and don't care what they have to do to get it." Booth got the impression that the young woman knew that from personal experience but Daisy continued before he could ask her to elaborate. "The sick thing is that none of them really have your best interests at heart. They're all doing it for their own twisted reasons. I'd be happy to share those reasons with you," she offered, "but I'm guessing that you already know what they are." She didn't even pause at Booth's nod of confirmation. "They really don't like your girlfriend," she informed Booth then her eyes widened and she turned to Brennan with a giggle. "Which would be you, Dr. Brennan," she said just in case Brennan didn't get it but Brennan had no trouble following Daisy's explanation and her lips twitched at the irony of them plotting to break Booth up with her to get Booth together with her. It was amusing but trying to follow that kind of logic gave her a headache so she moved on.

"Who threatened you, Daisy?" Brennan asked, having a bad feeling that she wasn't going to like the answer.

"Angela threatened to make my life a living hell and to get me fired. Cam just threatened to fire me," Daisy supplied, the frustration and anger she had felt at the time clear in her voice.

Brennan gasped in surprise. She had been right, she didn't like the answer at all. She was shocked that Angela would threaten the younger woman, especially so viciously because the artist didn't make idle threats. If she had said it, she had meant it. Cam, she wasn't so shocked about but she was angered that the pathologist would abuse her power over the interns like that.

"Why? Why would they do that?" Brennan asked the room in general, trying to understand the mindset that would make her friends think their behavior was acceptable.

"They didn't take it well when I declined to join their little cult," Daisy responded, taking the question literally.

"I don't understand," Brennan murmured, her frustration with that state of affairs obvious.

"Me, neither," sighed Daisy, leaning back into the chair and rolling her head to the side. Booth almost felt jealous as Brennan and Daisy's eyes met and they shared a look of understanding that he knew he would never get. His mind just didn't work like theirs did. Although he didn't support the squint's actions, he could sort of see how they would justify it to themselves. But not his Bones, she would never understand that type of behavior and that was one of the many things he loved about her.

"When did this happen, Daisy?" Booth queried, needing details if they were going to straighten out this mess.

"Friday night," she answered readily, her eyes going back to Brennan speculatively. "Can I ask you something, Dr. Brennan?"

"Oookay," said Brennan cautiously. "But I may not answer it," she added just to be fair. Booth and Daisy both laughed.

"Did you know?" Daisy whispered, her laughter suddenly gone. She had a burning need to hear the answer to her question but was, at the same time, terrified of the answer. Sitting here, basking in the concern coming her way and having a long conversation with her idol, Daisy felt better than she had since last Friday. She wasn't sure she could handle finding out that Brennan and Booth had also been playing around with her life but she had to know.

"Know what?" asked Brennan, still waiting for the question.

"Did you know that it was all a big joke when you told me Lance was breaking up with me, that Hodgins just made it up on the spot to get Booth to Club One Friday night, that I was never supposed to know? Did you know any of that?"

"Oh my God," gasped Brennan as the knowledge that she had technically caused the breakup between Daisy and Sweets slammed into her. She raised wide, horror stricken eyes to Booth and saw her own emotions reflected in his. Instantly, they both understood that this thing had gone way too far and that this young lady deserved some answers.

"No, Daisy, we didn't know. We honestly had no idea what they were up to until Friday night and I'm the one who told Bones about you and Sweets breaking up so that's more my fault than hers." Brennan was too stunned to provide an adequate answer so Booth took the question.

"It's not your fault," Daisy assured him honestly. She thought it was super sweet of Booth to deflect the blame onto himself but she knew where the real blame for her pain lay and it wasn't with either of these two. Any other time she would have been insatiably curious about everything they would tell her about their relationship but right now she only had one question. "What are you going to do to them?" she asked, her voice quivering in such gleeful anticipation of all the ways these two could mess with the other four that even Brennan understood the question.

"We're not going to do anything to them, Daisy," Brennan said quietly, trying to not let her guilt at what she had been a part of overwhelm her and make her agree to continue this charade. They had to put a stop to this before things got even worse.

"What?" gasped Daisy. "I told them you would kick their ass when you figured out what they were up to and you're just going to let them get away with trying to mess with your life?" Booth had a hard time stifling his grin at the utter disgust in Daisy's voice. Her face turned mutinous and she looked like a three year old about to have a temper tantrum. He felt terrible that he and Brennan had played a part in her breakup, however inadvertently, but he agreed with Brennan, enough was enough.

"Daisy," he said quietly, "I am truly sorry that we caused problems for you and Sweets and if there is anything we can do to rectify that, then you have our full cooperation but Bones is right, this needs to stop." Daisy wasn't a genius for nothing, she knew a determined man when she saw one and Booth wasn't going to change his mind. Irritation turned to resolve as a plan began to form in her mind. _They were not going to just get away with this._ If Booth and Brennan wouldn't punish them, that left it up to her.

Despite the high moral ground she had taken with the interfering foursome Friday night, she didn't even feel a twinge of conscience as she made her decision. She still didn't understand how they found it perfectly acceptable to interfere in people's personal lives like that but she did understand revenge and that she could live with. If she protected Booth and Brennan from further interference in the process, that was just icing on the cake.

"Okay," Daisy sighed, pretending to accept Booth's decision, knowing she had overdone it when his eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Dr. Brennan, did you know the Cairo museum is sending two more mummies for you to examine?" she asked quickly, turning to Brennan and sharing what she had overhead from someone in the Egyptology department in the elevator earlier today. Booth wasn't fooled. Daisy had apparently learned her diversionary tactics from Brennan and he could spot them a mile away.

"No, but I haven't checked my emails for a couple of days," Brennan admitted as if that was one of the seven deadly sins. "Do you know who?" she queried, her eyes gleaming with interest.

"No but the Egyptology department is really excited. I was hoping that maybe I could assist you in your examination but I don't want you to say yes because you feel sorry for me or feel bad about what happened." Daisy's speech was so fast, it took Brennan a second after she actually stopped speaking to decipher it and she was surprisingly ok with the request. She had actually enjoyed Daisy's enthusiasm for the last ancient remains that they had examined and had found the young woman to be knowledgeable and exceedingly careful with the remains. Which was good because she wouldn't endanger remains entrusted to her even to allay her guilt.

"I'm certain that can be arranged," Brennan conceded, unable to hold back a smile when Daisy started clapping her hands and bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.

"Okay, then, I'll just get out of here and let you two get back to what you were doing," Daisy grinned then blushed at what she had just said.

"Goodnight, Ms…Daisy." Daisy absolutely beamed when Brennan corrected herself and continued to use her first name.

"Goodnight, Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth," Daisy returned, grinning from ear to ear, genuinely thrilled about the possibility of working on the mummies. Making sure her cell phone was in her pocket, she turned and sauntered toward the door with a bounce in her step.

"Daisy," Booth called and she turned to face him, knowing she hadn't completely fooled him. "I know that you're hurt and angry and upset at the spawns of Satan," Booth grinned and Daisy blushed as she remembered calling Cam, Hodgins, Angela and Sweets exactly that. "And I'm sorry that they treated you badly but don't let your feelings make you do something you'll regret. You don't have to worry about your job," he glanced at Brennan and received her nod then continued, "but Bones and I will take care of this. Are we clear?"

"Of course," she assured him immediately, having to work hard not to give him the big, innocent eyes. They always worked on Lance, but she had a feeling that Booth wasn't quite so gullible. Booth continued to eye her suspiciously until Brennan walked up and leaned against him, sliding her arms around his waist.

"Leave her alone, Booth. Daisy is quite intelligent and she would never let her emotions lead her into doing something stupid." The instant his eyes left her, Daisy was out the door, pausing in relief that Booth had let her go. Brennan was right. She was very intelligent and she had no intention of doing anything stupid. Illogical, maybe, but not stupid and she very much doubted she would regret it.

Booth's arms slid around Brennan and he pulled her closer, leaning his forehead against hers. "You know we're going to have to tell them, don't you?" he asked softly, his nose nuzzling against hers.

"The spawns of Satan? About us?" she asked, her voice ripe with amusement.

"Umm hmm," he murmured, his lips sliding down her soft cheek to do delicious things to the corner of her mouth.

"But we didn't even get to mess with Hodgins yet," her whine came out as a soft gasp as his hand moved to her bottom and moved her against his hardening frame.

"We weren't going to mess with Hodgins, remember? What could be worse to a conspiracy theorist than being completely out of the loop?" he reminded her of the plan, nibbling his way to her neck because he knew if he really kissed her they would be right back on that couch and they needed to go home. Just as soon as he could make himself stop touching her.

"Yeah, right," she moaned, tilting her head to give him better access. "When should we tell them?" That one required some thought and Booth couldn't do that and touch her at the same time. Sliding his hands up to cup her face, he tilted it upward and looked into smoldering cerulean eyes.

"How does quitting time Friday afternoon sound?" He teased with a grin. "That way we can take off for the weekend and not have to listen to any of them until Monday." Brennan's eyes narrowed and she gave the suggestion its due consideration.

"I accept your logic," she smiled up at him as her arms wrapped around his neck. "Now take me home and take me to bed," she whispered against his lips.

Daisy moved away from the office door when silence reined for long enough for her to know their conversation was over. She felt a little bad about eavesdropping but couldn't stop a satisfied grin from spreading across her face. She was about to go over to the dark side, saunter through the gates of hell and she had just gotten the information that would open those doors for her, make the evil ones trust her and let her mess with their minds at the same time. _They were so going to regret ever messing with her._ Suddenly, life was good if you were Daisy Wick.


	24. Chapter 24

**Okay, guys, here you go. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review and I am, slowly but surely, answering them individually. Remember new chapter = review. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

An hour later, Booth followed Brennan into her apartment, closing and locking the door behind them. He had insisted they stop by Sid's for dinner because they had both missed lunch and he knew they wouldn't get around to dinner if they picked up takeout. They had discussed what they could do to try to make things right for Daisy but, unfortunately, neither had had an epiphany that would allow them to undo the damage to the young woman's heart. Any suffering on Sweets' part, they felt was deserved. He could have put a stop to Hodgins' lie at any point and he and Daisy would still be together. They were both also shocked that he had apparently chosen to concentrate his efforts on interfering in their lives rather than attempting reconciliation with Daisy. As far as they were concerned, Sweets was on his own in the heartbreak department.

Booth had some concerns about Daisy's intentions but he now felt that he and Brennan were sort of responsible for the intern so he would be keeping a close eye on her to make sure she really wasn't going to try for a little payback on her own. Brennan had snorted derisively at the concept, assuring Booth that Daisy's logical thought processes wouldn't allow her to consider that a viable option but Booth wasn't so sure. Booth had pointed out that Brennan was even more logical and she had been messing with her team but Brennan had pointed out that it had been Booth's idea and he couldn't deny it. They had agreed to disagree on the subject and moved on. They had talked about work. They had talked about Jared's visit. They had talked about everything except the thing that was at the forefront of both of their minds.

Booth pushed away from the door and walked toward Brennan who stood in the middle of the living room, looking at him, her eyes full of the same concerns he was sure was shining in his. "It's going to be okay," he assured her softly, slipping his arms around her and pulling her against him.

"I know," she sighed, slipping her arms around his waist and laying her head against his chest. "It's completely illogical but I feel a little sad that it's not going to be just ours anymore." She tried to put her feelings into words, instinctively knowing that he would understand what she meant. And he did.

"Me, too," Booth admitted because he understood her feelings perfectly. To a lot of people, the way they had been sneaking around for the past six months would seem a little seedy, as if they were ashamed of their relationship, but to them it had been a special, precious time. It was a time that was theirs and theirs alone with no outside influences to interfere in their discovery of each other and their developing relationship. It was a time that they had cherished and needed and they would both mourn the passing of that time. "What else?" he asked, knowing something else was bothering her.

"They're going to be mad, especially Angela," she willingly supplied. Well, Booth couldn't deny that. In fact, he figured Angela would flip her lid and he and Brennan would be in for some reproachful looks and lots of ranting and raving in addition to ear splitting squeals of approval. Then again, they held the trump card of knowing just what Angela had been up to and Booth wouldn't hesitate to use it if the artist gave Brennan too hard of a time. In his estimation, Angela's recent actions canceled out her right to be angry.

"Yeah, she'll probably be mad but we'll be giving her exactly what she wants so she can just suck it up and get over it. What else?" He asked quietly, his hands stroking up and down her back, offering her comfort and support.

Surrounded by his strength, his scent, his warmth, Brennan did find comfort in the firm strokes of those big, capable hands. She felt safe and secure and loved, cherished and adored even. She had no doubt that Booth was firmly committed to her and their life together just as she was but she couldn't help but remember Cam's and Sweets' actions. _Yes, they appeared to be all for her and Booth being together now but what if they reverted back to their earlier opinions?_ She couldn't help but wonder if Andrew had only said what he had to Booth to flush them out and would actually split them up as partners. She couldn't help the rise of anxiety and even fear as these possibilities materialized in her brain.

"What if Cam and Sweets change their minds again?" She asked, anxiety at the prospect of having to deal with that showing in her eyes.

"If Cam and Sweets know what's good for them, they'll leave us alone but if they don't, I will personally shoot both of them," he assured her, enjoying the prospect a little more than appropriate.

"You can't shoot them, Booth," she sighed. Narrowing his eyes thoughtfully, he considered her words for a moment.

"You're right. I can't shoot them," he agreed with a twinkle in his eye. "I'll approve your gun permit and _you_ can shoot them," he promised solemnly. "Next?" he prompted, knowing she still hadn't told him all of what was bothering her.

For several long, silent seconds, she searched for words to give her feelings form and realized Booth didn't need fancy words. He knew her well enough that all he needed was the truth.

"I'm scared," she whispered, her hands tightening on his back and her nails unconsciously digging in.

Oddly enough, Booth wasn't scared. He was a little irritated that they had to come clean to someone else's time frame rather than their own but he was fiercely proud that he would be able to claim Brennan as his to the entire world. He also wondered if Hacker had been quite as accepting as he had appeared when urging Booth to go for it but he and Brennan could and would handle anything the deputy director threw at them. He honestly hadn't given Cam and Sweets a second thought because he knew that nothing and no one was going to come between them and he was secure that Brennan felt the same way. But he wasn't surprised that Brennan was feeling some anxiety, even fear. She absolutely hated change in any part of her life. Change threatened her control and, with her background, she found that intolerable but she had adjusted to them amazingly well and quickly and she would adjust to this. But he could give her the reassurances she needed in the meantime.

"Do you trust me?" he asked softly, his hands sliding up to cup her face and tilt it toward him.

"Yes," she replied instantly and he was humbled by the absolute trust shining in her eyes.

"Then trust me when I tell you everything is going to be ok. The squints may be angry but they'll get over it." His head dropped until his forehead rested against hers, his thumbs gently stroking her cheeks. "I love you, Bones, and no matter what happens, I will continue to love you and I know you love me. I see it every time I look into your eyes, every time you smile at me. I will never, ever leave you, Baby, and I trust you to never leave me, to stay and fight for us if things get rough. We have something very special here, Baby, something that most people look for their entire lives and never find and nothing can change what we have unless we let it. And we're too smart to let that happen." Booth held her eyes the entire time he was speaking and saw the instant her fear dissolved, could feel the tension leak out of her body as she relaxed against him. He was absolutely enchanted by the radiant smile that drifted across her lips as her eyes twinkled up at him.

"I love it when you use logic on me," she grinned then she sobered and looked at him intently. "I love you, Booth. Logically, I know that you're right and I trust you enough not to give possibilities undue influence over my emotions." Booth was warmed to his very soul by her easy acceptance of his words as the truth, by her trust and her willingness to follow his lead. He was also turned on by her scientist voice.

"I love it when you use squint talk on me," he whispered, his lips hovering just above hers, waiting to see if she needed to express any more concerns before he kissed her.

"I know." She gave a throaty laugh that sent shivers down Booth's spine. He couldn't resist dipping his head that last couple of inches for just one taste of her, intending only a brief kiss to assuage the sudden need raging within. But the instant his lips brushed hers, he was lost.

Sighing into his mouth, her lips opened for him, her arms snaking around his neck and pulling him closer. His tongue swept into her mouth, teasing and tasting every delicious inch and he felt himself drowning in the heat of her. His hands slid to her back and jerked her against him. Her breasts flattened against his chest and she gasped into his mouth, the sound spiraling through him, touching every nerve ending in his body and engulfing him in flames.

The moment Booth's mouth touched hers, Brennan felt all her concerns melt away into nothingness, her logical thought processes shattered and nothing mattered but appeasing the need this man so easily roused in her. Her tongue tangled with his. Her hands fisted in his hair, tugging, needing him closer. His hand moved to her bottom, urging her closer and the other slid around to her side, his long fingers brushing the underside of her breast. Moaning, her back arched just as his big hand opened over her aching breast, the hard nipple stabbing into his palm.

Hissing in a breath at the arousing sounds coming out of Brennan's throat and the way her body twisted against his, feeding his raging hunger and all consuming need, Booth suddenly bent his knees and swept Brennan into his arms. His mouth continued to devour hers as he strode down the hallway and into the bedroom. His body was on fire. Hot, hard and ready, he wanted nothing more than to throw her onto the bed, tear off her clothes and take her. Until he paused as the side of the bed and gazed down into smoky blue eyes filled with trust and desire. Then he wanted to gently lay her down, savor her, worship and adore her body with his.

Holding her eyes, he allowed her feet to slide to the floor, his hands going to her blouse to slowly start unbuttoning it, his fingers gliding over each luscious inch of her body as it was revealed. Brennan blinked at him in surprise at the disappearance of his urgency, her body humming with the need to rip off his clothes and drag him down onto the bed. _But she liked this, too_, she acknowledged with a moan as Booth's hand parted her blouse and his eyes moved downward. Under his hot, appreciative stare, she could feel her breast swelling, straining within the confines of the black lace bra. Her nipples tightened and she bit her lip on a moan as his hands spread out and his fingers stroked her quivering stomach then moved upward. One finger slid under the front clasp of her bra and with a quick, efficient twist the cups spread apart. Brennan's entire body quivered in excited anticipation as he slowly peeled the cups back and revealed her breasts to his reverent gaze. His thumbs stroked her begging nipples and her head fell back, her eyes closing with a low moan of need.

"You are the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he whispered against her throat, his lips opening to plant wet, open mouthed kisses along its length. Pushing the shirt and bra off of her shoulders, his hands immediately returned to her breasts, weighing, shaping, lifting, his thumbs repeatedly brushing across their pebbled tips.

"Ahh," Brennan moaned as his mouth and tongue left a wet trail down her neck, over her collarbone and onto her breast. Her hands gripped his hair and she pulled him closer just as his lips closed around its straining peak, rolling it between his tongue and the roof of his mouth then sucking hard. _Oh, God, she was going to melt into a big puddle of goo right here before they even got to the good stuff, _Brennan thought, her hips thrusting jerkily against his, the rise of desire so thick it nearly choked her. The incredible tide of want building inside of her sent her hands to the buttons of his shirt, desperately needing to feel his hot, naked skin against hers as his talented mouth moved to her other breast.

Feeling her body trembling against his, her mound grazing his throbbing erection with every twist of her hips, sent Booth's rampant desire into overdrive. His gut twisted into even tighter knots and his entire body hardened even more with every arousing whimper that escaped her throat. _God, he wanted them both naked. Now._ Reluctantly releasing her nipple with a soft little pop, he raised his head and looked down at the woman in his arms, his body growing impossibly harder at the unbridled need and utter abandonment shining from her eyes.

Brennan met dark eyes burning with a fire that seemed to singe every nerve ending in her body and her shaking grew worse, her usually nimble fingers becoming useless. "Booth, please," she moaned, not even completely sure what she was asking for but Booth knew what she wanted, needed, just as badly as he did. Brushing her fumbling fingers aside, he hastily unbuttoned his shirt, tearing off two buttons in the process and not caring in the least. Even as he was shrugging the shirt off of his shoulders, Brennan's hands were stroking over the muscles of his chest and she was lifting on tiptoes to drag her breasts in their wake, almost sobbing with relief at the skin to skin contact. Booth's breath shuddered out as her hands grabbed onto his shoulders and she moved closer, her breasts flattening against his chest and her mouth laving hot, wet kisses over his upper chest and throat. When her teeth closed on his shoulder, he growled deep in his throat, his body surging against hers. Without conscious thought, his hands went to his belt and seconds later he was kicking his pants and underwear aside, his hands already working on the fastenings of her pants. Whimpering, she helped him push her pants and panties over the swell of her hips, her mouth never losing contact with his hot, sweaty skin.

Lowering her onto the bed, Booth stripped her pants and panties down her legs. Flinging them aside, he followed her down, settling on top of her, one heavy thigh pushing insistently between hers and his mouth took hers voraciously, seducing and demanding at the same time. He was so hard he hurt and his body was demanding that he part her thighs and slide home, that he give it some relief. _Slow was going to have to wait. _

Brennan moaned and tried to get closer still, her torso twisting to graze the pebbled tips of her breasts against his chest. Her hands went to his rear end, her nails digging in as she pulled him closer and bucked her hips, grinding her center against his thigh. His rock hard erection pressed almost painfully against her lower abdomen but she didn't care. Every inch of her body was burning with the need to find release. Her stomach fisted, her throat tightened as each wave of desire hit her stronger, harder than the last and she desperately wanted to feel Booth's body driving into hers.

Booth groaned in disappointment as Brennan allowed her hips to drop back onto the bed, instantly missing the delicious pressure and friction against his hard length. He hissed in pleasure when her hand moved from his hip and her fingers closed tightly around his turgid flesh, his hips now jerkily thrusting against her. He closed his eyes and fought back his orgasm when her hand began to move on him in long, slow strokes. His leg nudged her thighs further apart and he was fitting himself between them when the discordant jangling of the phone beside Brennan's bed made him pause and stiffen in disbelief. _NO!_, his body screamed, unable to tolerate the possibility of being interrupted again tonight and not getting to finish what they had started.

"_NO!_" moaned Brennan as the sound penetrated the fog of desire surrounding her.

"Ignore it," Booth ordered, his head bending to her throat as he settled between her splayed thighs, growling when his hard, sensitive flesh grazed her hot, moist center. Gasping, Brennan arched her hips, her hands moving over Booth's body with lightening speed, clutching and stroking all those sensitive spots only a lover knew, determined to ignore the annoying phone.

"_Dammit, I am going to kill someone_," she snapped after it seemed like the ringing had gone on for hours. It was distracting her from the delicious things Booth was doing to her body and she couldn't take it anymore. "_What?!"_ she snarled into the receiver.

Booth fought the urge to snatch the phone from her hand and hurtle it against the opposite wall, knowing he would derive a great deal of satisfaction from the act. He didn't give a damn who was on the phone, he had no intention of stopping in the act with Brennan again tonight, not even if the world was ending in the next hour. _Especially if the world was ending in the next hour_, he decided, unable to think of a better way to spend his last hour on earth than making love with the love of his life. With a wicked curl to his lips he decided to give Brennan a little incentive to quickly end the conversation and return her attention to him. Bending his head, he traced first her left then her right clavicle with the tip of his tongue but the instant his lips touched her naked flesh, he forgot about teasing and simply concentrated on pleasing her while controlling the growing hunger of his own body.

"Temperence?" questioned Jared, obviously startled by the overt hostility in her voice.

"Yes, this is Temperence Brennan," she gasped as Booth's lips, teeth and tongue explored her flesh and sent fresh darts of need to settle between her thighs and increase the throbbing need for release. "Who is this?" She demanded, her voice coming out in a strangled moan as Booth's lips closed around a nipple just as one of his oh so clever hands slipped between her thighs, immediately finding its target and stroking her intimately.

"This is Jared Booth," Jared replied stiffly, a little insulted at Brennan's brusque manner. "I'm looking for Seeley and decided to try you since he isn't answering his cell," Jared explained, his eyes widening at the sounds on the other end of the phone. He sure as hell hoped he wasn't hearing what he thought he was hearing because it would break his big brother's heart to know the love of his life had taken a lover. Uncomfortable with the sounds still emanating from his phone on many levels but mostly because he didn't want to know for sure and be responsible for keeping something like that from his brother, Jared decided to cut his losses. "I'll just keep trying Seeley on his cell," he said hurriedly, "I'm sorry to bother you. Goodnight, Temperence."

"Wait," panted Brennan as Booth's mouth moved over the quivering muscles of her sweat slickened abdomen, his fingers never faltering in their smooth glide across her clit, moving down to trace her slick folds and trailing back up to resume the pressure on her clit. But it was too late, Jared had already hung up. Brennan tossed the phone aside without a second thought and submerged herself in the pleasure Booth was giving her. He nudged her thighs wider apart and scooted down on the bed, his teeth nipping at the sensitive flesh of her inner thigh, his tongue soothing and laving those spots as he moved closer and closer to her center. He was on fire, his body burning from the inside out and he couldn't wait to taste her, steep her in ecstasy and follow her into oblivion. Parting her folds, his tongue flicked out to swipe over her engorged nub.

"Booth," shuddered Brennan, clutching handfuls of his hair and urging him closer as fire shot from her center and skittered along every nerve ending in her body. Her hips arched, begging for more and his hands slipped under her bottom, lifting her toward his descending mouth. Just as he made fuller contact, they both heard his phone ringing.

"_NO!!"_ wailed Brennan. "It's Jared," she retained just enough sanity to tell Booth that even as her body twisted toward him, urging him to ignore the phone and continue his ministrations.

"Sonofabitch," snarled Booth, rolling off the bed and stalking to his pants, knowing his brother wouldn't let up if he didn't answer. "This had damned well better be good, Jared," he snapped into the phone, his eyes locked on the tousled, sexy woman lying back on the bed. His whole body ached with wanting as he took in her delectable body posed in a wanton sprawl and the way her eyes were roaming his body, clearly pleased with what she saw.

"Seeley, where the hell are you?" demanded Jared more than a little put out by his brother's surly tone.

"Is something wrong, Jared?" Booth returned, ignoring his brother's question. His eyes wandered back up Brennan's body and met hers. Rolling onto her side, she gave him a lusty, sultry smile and crooked a finger at him, inviting him to come back to bed. Knowing what would happen if he did, Booth shook his head, trying to concentrate on talking to his brother. With a nonchalant shrug, Brennan rolled over onto her back and Booth relaxed. Until her hands lifted and slowly, lightly, began to brush across her breasts, avoiding the nipples until they were peaked and begging for her touch. Closing her thumb and forefinger around both peaks at the same time, she rolled and tugged at them rhythmically, her back arching into her own touch and her legs moving restlessly against the sheets.

Booth's breath suspended in his throat and the moans escaping Brennan's mouth flew across the room and shot straight to his groin, making him feel like he was going to explode any second. She knew exactly what she was doing to him and she was doing it on purpose but he couldn't make himself look away. _Hell, he didn't want to look away. _He wanted to finish this conversation, climb back into her bed and make love with her until they were both too exhausted to move.

"You have ten seconds to tell me what you want, Jared," Booth growled into the phone, unable to stifle a groan as one of Brennan's hands wandered over her abdomen and headed lower.

"What the hell is wrong with everyone tonight, Seeley?" demanded Jared. "I've been trying to call you for the last hour and finally called Temperence who was even snarkier than usual, I might add," Jared ranted and Booth stiffened at the criticism. Considering the circumstances, Booth thought Brennan being snarky was the least of what Jared deserved. Right this second, he could almost have taken a swing at his brother for his untimely interruption.

"Bones and I were busy, Jared," he snapped. "You have four seconds left," he reminded his brother, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation, trying to force his temper into submission. Looking up to see Brennan staring at him wide eyed, all hints of playful teasing gone, he strode over to the bed and sat down next to her, reaching out to stroke her cheek and give her a reassuring smile. In the next second, she was on her knees beside him, her arms wrapping him up tightly and Booth instantly calmed.

"It's been a long day," Jared sighed, and Booth knew that was as close as he would get to an apology. "Padme and I flew in a day early to surprise you but our connection was delayed and we only got in an hour ago. I've been trying to call you since we landed," Jared explained.

"Where are you now?" Booth questioned, wanting to pound his head against a hard surface in frustration. He loved his brother but was it too freaking much to ask for everyone to leave him and Brennan alone for a couple of hours?

"Your place, Bro. We got here about 20 minutes ago and I used my key to let us in." Booth made a mental note to retrieve that key since there was now a good chance that his brother would be walking in on something he had no business seeing if he used it.

"You should go," Brennan whispered somewhat reluctantly from where her head rested on Booth's shoulder, easily overhearing Jared's words. She wanted to drag him down on the bed and convince him to stay but she knew how important his relationship with his brother was to him and she didn't want to cause things to be any tenser than they already were between the two. Booth's heart melted at the selfless words but he had no intention of leaving her tonight or ever again.

"I wasn't expecting you tonight, Jared, so I already have plans." Booth spoke to Jared but his eyes held Brennan's and silently asked if she was okay with breaking the news of them to Jared here and now. Honestly, Booth hadn't seriously considered telling Jared during this visit but, if they if they were going to share it with the squints, he guessed he really should tell Jared. Over the phone wasn't ideal but there was no way Booth was walking out Brennan's front door tonight so it would have to do. Smoothing the hair back from her face, he patiently waited for her answer.

"I understand needing to work," Jared conceded with another sigh, reconsidering his interpretation of what he had heard earlier when talking to Brennan. "How much longer will you be? If it's not going to be too long, we'll just hang out here and see you when you get home. Or, if that's a problem, we can head to our hotel and see you tomorrow," Jared offered, a little unnerved at Booth's silence. Raising a brow at Brennan, he could practically see her gathering her courage and finally giving him a stiff nod to go ahead. Slipping an arm around her waist, he hugged her tightly to him and dropped his forehead against hers.

"You and Padme are welcome to stay at my place rather than a hotel," Booth offered, the softness in his voice and smile exclusively for the woman in his arms.

"Are you sure, Bro?" Jared asked doubtfully. "We wouldn't want to cramp your style," he teased and Booth grinned.

"I'm sure and you won't be cramping my style," Booth offered sincerely.

"Okay, then," laughed Jared. "Should I wait up on you?"

"No," said Booth, his hand rubbing up and down Brennan's back to relieve the tension he could feel creeping into her. Brennan tried to force herself to relax but she couldn't help but be concerned about what Jared might say. _What if he objected? _She knew that Booth wouldn't listen if Jared did object but she couldn't bear to come between the brothers. "Hold on a second, Jared," Booth said quietly and laid the phone on the bed. His free hand went to Brennan's chin and tilted her face up to his. "It's going to be fine," he reassured her. "You and I are a team, Bones, all the way and nothing is going to change that. Are you okay with this?" Brennan blinked back tears at the love in his voice and stiffened her spine, nodding. Booth searched her eyes until he saw the resolve settle there. Dropping a light kiss on her mouth, he picked up the phone, his arm still holding her tightly against him. "No, Jared, don't wait up on me. I won't be home tonight," he continued as if there hadn't been a pause in their conversation.

"Bummer," commiserated Jared, assuming that Booth and Brennan were working and Booth didn't have any trouble divining his thoughts.

"Not so much," Booth assured his brother with a trace of humor. He could think of plenty of things he would be more bummed about than spending the night in Brennan's bed. "Bones and I aren't working, Jared," he added then wait for it, wait for it, ah, there it was. The sharp intake of breath and the choking sound told Booth that Jared had suddenly gotten what he was telling him. Booth wasn't entirely certain what he had expected Jared's reaction to be but his brother surprised him.

"It's about damn time," Jared whistled approvingly. "Congratulations, Seeley. The two of you obviously belong together." Booth couldn't believe how good it felt to have told someone, to have it out there in the open. The sincerity in Jared's voice warmed Booth's heart and obviously got through to Brennan as well. Sliding around to sit in his lap, she gave him a stunning smile and snuggled against him. Stifling a groan as her bottom wiggled around on his lap, Booth almost missed his brother's next comment. "Of course, I was beginning to think you were too much of a moron to ever tell her how you felt. I'm glad to see you're not entirely retarded after all," Jared teased good naturedly and Booth snorted.

"Funny," he allowed, hissing when the very naked Brennan shifted on his lap again. "Jared, I have to go. I'll call you in the morning."

"Okay, Bro." Booth flipped the phone shut and tossed it onto the bed, both of his arms going around Brennan. "Are you all right?" he asked, his chin resting on the top of her head. She nodded.

"I guess we're well and truly ruptured now," she sighed. It took Booth a minute to figure that one out then he started to laugh.

"Busted, baby, we're busted, not ruptured and we were busted the second Daisy walked into your office." Brennan filed the correction away for future reference. "I know," she sighed. "I'm fine, Booth," she assured him and she honestly was. Now that their relationship had been revealed, Brennan realized that her fear had been completely irrational and Booth was absolutely right. They could and would handle whatever came their way and they would do it together. Feeling his length hardening against her bottom, her thoughts turned to a much more pleasant subject. Ducking her head to hide a smile, she shifted her weight in his lap, reveling in the way his arms tightened and the soft hiss of his breath. "I could be better," she teased, turning her face into his throat and inhaling the musky, male scent that was Booth.

"Oh, yeah," he teased back, his lips drifting over the exposed side of her face, "how's that?"

"I would be much, much better if we could get back to what we were doing," she finally raised her head and laughed up at him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I think that can be arranged," he whispered against her lips, kissing her so tenderly that her heart actually paused in her chest. Her mouth opened under his and his mouth became hard and hungry, his tongue slipping past her lips and seeking out its hidden depths. Long minutes later, he pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. "Hold that thought," Booth ordered before gently disentangling them, sliding her from his lap to the bed.

Brennan looked at him in shock until he stalked to the other side of the bed, unplugged the phone and picked it up off of the nightstand. She was laughing by the time he scooped the cell phone off the bed. She was howling with mirth by the time he reached down and grabbed her pants without even pausing, digging her cell phone out of the pocket on his way out the door. She was still smiling when he came back a couple of minutes later, closing and locking the door behind him, taking no chances they would be interrupted again even though they were alone in the apartment.

She stopped laughing the instant she met his eyes across the room. They were hot and hungry as they roamed her body with a slow, thorough, predatory gaze. Brennan shivered, her nipples tightened and her center flooded with renewed arousal as Booth pushed away from the door and came toward the bed, making no attempt to hide the effect seeing her like this had on his body. Seconds later, she found herself flat on her back with his body pressing her into the mattress.

"Now where were we?" he asked against her mouth just as his lips nudged hers apart and his tongue plunged into her mouth. Moaning, Brennan wrapped herself around him and gave herself over to his kiss, not even attempting to answer the question. Besides, it didn't matter where they had been. It only mattered where they were now and where they were going and Brennan already knew it could only get better from here.


	25. Chapter 25

**Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review. Musie is in a really good mood today so I took advantage of it and you get another chapter. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Early Thursday morning, Angela rode the elevator up to Booth's apartment, trying to quiet the butterflies in her stomach. _She had every right to do this,_ she told herself. Someone had to protect Brennan's heart and stop Booth from making a mistake he would regret for the rest of his life. Angela _knew_ that Booth loved Brennan and that someday he would dump the home wrecker and turn to his partner. She was only doing her job as Brennan's best friend to have a little chat with Booth and convince him not to break Brennan's heart by telling her about the bimbo tomorrow. In the long run, Booth would benefit from the arrangement, she just had to convince him of that now. But that was the backup plan. The primary plan was to convince him to dump said bimbo immediately and Brennan would never need to know. Angela thought it was a perfectly acceptable plan. She hadn't run it by the others.

After their meeting and her little meltdown on Monday, things were more than a little tense in their group. Cam had bared herself before them and Angela honestly felt empathetic for her suffering but she was still harboring some anger at the other woman's actions and she certainly didn't trust her any longer. Cam had stood beside her decision to leave the group and reiterated that nothing good could come of their continued interference before walking out. Sweets had looked torn, as if he might follow and Angela hadn't tried to stop him. It was his decision to make and he had finally made the right one, stiffening his spine and assuring Angela that he was still in before taking off.

Hodgins had smiled at her and softly kissed her cheek, sending a shiver down her spine before he left without a word. But she didn't need words from Hodgins, she had never doubted that he would stand beside her no matter what and she knew she had some hard decisions to make about him and her life and she was going to have to make them soon. But not until she got things straightened out between Booth and Brennan. Then she would know that it was okay to reach out for what her heart desired the most, then she would take her life in hand and stop just drifting so she didn't have to make the hard choices.

Taking a couple of deep breaths for courage just as the elevator door opened, Angela stiffened her spine, lifted her chin and strode toward Booth's apartment, determination in every line of her body. Five steps from her destination, the door opened and a laughing, very attractive young woman stepped into the hallway. Angela's eyes widened in astonishment then narrowed in anger, critically eyeing the woman and cataloging everything she saw. Young, attractive, nice body showed off to advantage in a tight t-shirt and jeans. Not Booth's usual type but that didn't seem to matter because it was obvious from her sleepy eyes that she had just crawled out of bed. Angela suddenly found anger overwhelming her. _What the hell was Seeley Booth thinking? What if Brennan had been the one walking down this hallway? Everything would have been ruined, that's what. _Angela wanted to have a screaming, ranting, raving temper tantrum but she reined in her temper, crossed her arms over her chest and waited for the home wrecker to notice her.

"I know how you like your coffee by now, Babe," Padme called over her shoulder. "I'll be right back. I love you."

The answering rumble coming from inside the apartment was drowned out by the fury roaring through Angela at the younger woman so openly expressing her love for Booth. _This was much worse than she had suspected and she had to do something but what? _ As much as she would enjoy physically kicking the bimbo's ass to the curb, Angela knew it wouldn't solve anything in the long run. Ignoring the palms itching to do physical violence, she suddenly knew the best course of action would be to pump the bimbo for information that she could use later. Relaxing her aggressive stance, Angela stood her ground.

Padme closed the apartment door and turned toward the elevator, eager for her first cup of coffee. There was none to be found in the apartment, hence her going out at the ungodly hour of 7AM when she didn't have to be up early. She was brought up short when she almost ran into the slender, dark-haired woman who stood blocking her way. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there," Padme apologized with a polite smile.

Angela looked down into friendly brown eyes from her superior height and forced what she hoped passed for a smile to her face. "That's okay. You seem to be in a hurry," she answered, trying to force friendliness into her voice. She thought she sounded rather strangled but Padme's smile widened.

"Yeah, I need some coffee and Seeley doesn't have any," Padme sighed and moved toward the elevator. Angela's hands fisted at her sides at the younger woman's easy use of Booth's given name but she fell into step beside her, determined to learn all she could from this surprise encounter.

"Have you known Booth long?" Angela asked as they stepped onto the elevator, feeling she didn't have time to pussyfoot around.

"Not that long," Padme shrugged, punching the button for the ground floor and warily eying Angela. The other woman's manner was friendly enough but Padme didn't much care for the cold, almost threatening look in her eyes when they turned her way. Enclosed in the confines of the elevator, Padma could almost feel the waves of hostility emanating from the older woman and, inexplicable, directed at her. Nervous, Padme reached out and forcefully punched the ground floor button repeatedly.

Angela's eyes narrowed at the succinct and completely unhelpful answer, her mind quickly considering and discarding ideas to get the information she needed but when Padme scooted into the corner and punched the elevator button rather desperately, Angela grinned to herself. _She was making the home wrecker nervous? Now wasn't that a shame?_ _Not!!_ Suddenly in a much better mood, Angela decided to cut to the chase now that she had a captive audience. Timing it perfectly, she waited until the ground floor lit up then quickly stepped forward and pressed the button to keep the doors closed, fighting laughter as the look of relief on the younger woman's face turned to alarm and then fear. _Good_. Angela wanted her scared. She wanted her to listen closely to what she had to say and never forget a word.

"What…what are you doing?" demanded Padme in a shaking voice as she pressed back against the elevator wall, not having anywhere else to go because of the way Angela was standing.

"I'm cutting through all the bullshit, Sweetie," Angela answered, grinning. "Since we're both adults, I thought you might appreciate it if I got to the point."

"Okay," Padme nodded, swallowing hard, noting the waves of anger and resentment rolling off of Angela despite her quasi friendly tone. Padme was good at reading people, men more so than women, admittedly, but she didn't have any difficulty ascertaining that this woman, whom she had never even met, hated her guts. Padme had no idea why and she really didn't care, her instincts told her to not provoke the psycho, to just let the other woman vent and get the hell away from her as fast as possible, preferably without bloodshed on her part.

Angela's eyebrow lifted at Padme's easy capitulation, a little disappointed that she wasn't putting up a fight so Angela would feel justified in releasing all of her angst. "Listen up, Sweetie, I want to give you the 411 on your boyfriend."

Padme's eyes widened at this indication that Angela knew who she was and that she wanted to tell her something about Jared but she didn't want to provoke the psycho so she kept quiet.

Again, Angela was disappointed in the lack of spirit shown by her victim and she felt a stinging twinge of conscience that she was about to do the same thing to this relatively innocent young woman that she was so angry at Cam for doing to Brennan. But she didn't let that stop her. "I know that he's good looking and God knows he's sex on wheels," Angela ignored the way Padme stiffened and glared at her, "but there is only one woman that man is ever going to love and it's not you."

"Who the hell do you think you are?" demanded Padme, infuriated at Angela's words.

"I'm the woman trying to save you some heartache," she answered, honesty ringing in her softened voice. Stealing herself, Angela forced herself to go in for the kill. "You may be with him right now but Seeley Booth will never be yours. His heart will always belong to someone else and if you wind up ruining that for him, he'll hate you for it in the long run."

Padme stiffened at the pitying look Angela sent her way, so angry that it took her a moment to understand what Angela had actually said. Then she understood. The other woman wanted Seeley, she obviously knew there was someone else in his life but didn't know who it was and had completely misunderstood Padme's presence at his apartment, evidently deciding to use intimidation to scare her off. Padme didn't like to play games that affected other people and normally would have immediately come clean, correcting the misunderstanding but she didn't owe this hostile, angry, insulting woman any explanations. Plus, just last night, Jared had expressed his happiness that his older brother had finally told the woman he loved how he felt and they were now together. He had also expressed his concerns that everyone wouldn't leave them alone and let them find their way, his guilt for what he had deliberately done to that relationship in a misguided attempt to compete with his brother coming to the surface.

Looking into Angela's hostile gaze, Padme's gut told her that this woman would go to extremes to get what she wanted and what she wanted was, apparently Seeley. This woman wouldn't hesitate to attack the socially awkward Dr. Brennan in the same manner that she was attacking her and Padme had no doubts she would cause all kinds of difficulties in a fledgling relationship that didn't need that. While Padme didn't necessarily owe Dr. Brennan any loyalty, she had actually liked the awkward anthropologist the only time she had met her and she did owe Jared and, by extension, his brother her loyalty and what protection she could provide.

"I appreciate the pep talk, _Sweetie_," she mocked a very surprised Angela, "but my relationship with Seeley is none of your business." Angela felt frustration rise and found she didn't like the younger woman fighting back after all but she had already gone this far, she had nothing to lose by going all the way.

"He doesn't love you and he never will. You might have his body but you'll never have his heart because that's already taken. Take my advice and get out before you get your heart broken," Angela snapped, releasing the button to allow the elevator doors to open and facing forward, done with this conversation and ready to vacate the premises. To her shock, Padme's hand streaked out and her finger landed on the button that Angela's had just vacated.

"As much as I appreciate your advice, I think I'll pass on taking it," Padme snapped. "And _you_ might want to remember that people fall out of love every day, especially when they're with someone who meets their every need." Padme deliberately made her voice throaty and suggestive, pleased as rage flashed in the brown eyes doing their best to stare her down.

"We'll see," snapped Angela, reaching out and knocking Padme's finger aside.

"I guess we will," Padme called after her as she stalked toward the front door of the building.

"Bitch," muttered Angela under her breath, turning in the direction of the Jeffersonian.

"Psycho bitch," muttered Padme under her breath, pushing through the front doors and turning in the direction of the nearest coffee store.

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Daisy Wick had spent hours last night sitting in her lonely apartment, mentally reviewing and refining her plan, coming up with every possible variation of problems that might arise that she could think of and formulating workable solutions to every one of those problems. She was as ready as she was ever going to get for Operation Revenge to begin. The only thing that still concerned her at all about the plan was how very critical the timing was. She had an extremely limited window in which to launch her plan but she needed certain conditions to be met or she didn't have a chance of achieving the ultimate revenge.

Daisy looked up from her spot on the platform as Angela stalked through the lab doors, heading directly toward her office, looking neither left nor right, her aggressive stomp warning people to stay out of her way. Daisy's eyebrows rose. It would appear that something had upset Ms. Montenegro. _Interesting and fortuitous._ For her, that is. She needed the person most likely to be suspicious of her sudden change of heart distracted and viola, Angela was distracted, almost like divine intervention. Ducking her head to hide a smile, Daisy mentally reviewed the parameters that she had so carefully constructed to assure the success of her plan and made a decision. It was time.

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Angela stomped into her office, threw her purse across the room and sank down into her desk chair, immediately burying her face in the arms folded atop her desk, absolutely disgusted. With herself. She had no idea how she had gone from information gathering mode into seek and destroy mode with Booth's bimbo. _Okay, fine, she knew how it had happened_. She had allowed the unreasonable anger she had been feeling lately about her life seemingly being out of her control to spill over onto the Booth/Brennan situation. _Who was she kidding?_ This anger was spilling over onto and beginning to color everything in her life and it was turning her into someone she didn't know and didn't particularly like. She knew she had had no right to attack that young woman in the elevator so viciously, even in defense of her best friend and she had no doubt she would be answering for that as soon as Booth found out what she had done. She suddenly felt much more sympathetic toward Cam's current predicament because she, too, felt small and mean and vicious and as if she deserved to be punished.

_Oh, God, what was she going to do? _Logically, she knew that she should back off and let Booth and Brennan handle their own love life but she found it hilarious that the word logically would even enter her brain and it was highly unlikely that she would follow her own advice. After all, she hadn't done anything logical, rational or reasonable in her own life in so long that she was obviously seeking to exert control over something that she truly cared about but carried much less of an emotional risk to her than her own screwed up love life. Hence her obsession with Booth and Brennan. If she could make things work out for them, she could trust herself to make the hard decisions in her own life and, she sadly acknowledged to herself, she just wasn't going to be able to let it go until something was settled between Booth and Brennan one way or the other. _So she had better stop feeling sorry for herself and get to work on damage control_, she told herself firmly. Standing up, she straightened her shoulders and headed for the door, figuring she had no longer than the rest of the day to come up with something before she was taken to task by Booth. Fortunately for her, she already had a plan that would delay her having to face the wrath of Booth and quite possibly deliver the exact results she was after, she just needed to take care of a few minor details before she put it into action.

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Padme entered Booth's apartment, kicking the door closed behind her a little harder than she had meant to but not as hard as she wanted to, still angry over her encounter with the psycho in the elevator. Jared jumped up from where he was sprawled on the couch and relieved her of one of the coffee cups and the bag of muffins she was juggling, his brow lifting in question as he took in her furious face.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I just got warned off by one of your brother's old flames," she answered, lingering anger from the encounter seeping into her voice.

"What happened?" Jared's concern was rapidly escalating. It took a lot to make his fiancé angry and he could clearly see she was furious.

"At least, I assumed she was an old flame but she did act crazy so I guess she could just be some random psycho who's fixated on Seeley," she rambled, musing out loud.

"Padme!" Jared barked out in his best Attention soldier voice.

"What?" she snapped giving him a disgruntled look. She had repeatedly told him she wasn't one of his soldiers but he seemed to have difficulty grasping that.

"What happened?" Looking at him now, she immediately softened at the concern in his face and voice. Taking a deep breath, she tamped down her temper and told him, relating her conversation with the bizarre woman almost word for word. At the end of the tale, Jared whistled sharply.

"And you didn't get a name?" Padme rolled her eyes.

"It's not like we became BFF's, Jared, so no, I didn't get her name but she was tall, slender, dark hair, brown eyes, very pretty and she made it clear she considered your brother her personal property."

Ignoring Padme's sarcasm, Jared frowned at the description. That didn't sound like Seeley's usual type but, then again, Seeley didn't have a type anymore. He had been a one woman man for years and now that he was happy with that woman, Jared hated the thought of anyone, especially a jealous ex stirring up trouble for the two of them. Running through the description again, he could only think of one person of his brother's acquaintance that it fit but he immediately dismissed her as a possibility. His brother had been stupid enough to sleep with Temperence's boss but he would never be stupid enough to sleep with her best friend. Regardless of the woman's identity, his brother needed to know about this.

"We have to tell Seeley about this," he voiced his last thought aloud and Padme nodded, in full agreement. If the couple had trouble coming their way, they at least deserved a head's up so they could be on the lookout for it. Padme knew from experience that it was far from pleasant to be blindsided by the psycho from hell and she could only hope that if the unpleasant woman ever caught up with Brennan, the good doctor would kick her obnoxious ass.


	26. Chapter 26

**Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review and I hope you enjoy the update. **

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

"What the hell is she doing here?" gasped Angela in outrage as she looked up and spotted Booth's main squeeze just entering the lab. _Oh, this was bad. This was very, very bad. There were no words for how bad this was,_ Angela thought, watching with narrowed, hostile eyes as Booth walked out of Brennan's office and spotted the young woman, hurriedly making his way toward her. Taking her arm, he pulled her aside and bent his head as she began to speak. Leaving the platform quick as a flash, Angela made her way to where she would have a prime view and might actually catch a few words of the conversation but was also concealed from the couple's view, deciding it might be a bit awkward if the home wrecker spotted her.

Booth had been sitting in Brennan's office, whining, trying to convince her to go to lunch with him when security had called and informed her that a visitor had just signed in for her. Brennan had raised a brow in surprise at the visitor's identity and Booth had offered to go greet her since Brennan was deeply into a chapter in her next book and informed him that she couldn't stop while the ideas were flowing.

"Padme, is everything all right?" Booth asked, taking the young woman's arm and pulling her to the side of the main doors so they wouldn't be blocking the entrance.

"Everthing's fine, Seeley," she smiled up at him. "A bunch of the guys Jared used to work with here in DC wanted to take him to lunch so I decided to drop by and see if Dr. Brennan was free." Padme wanted the brothers to spend more time together in the future than they did now and she thought getting to know Brennan better was a step in the right direction. Besides, if she had read Booth's feelings right when she had seen him and Brennan together before, they were going to wind up being sisters-in-law if Booth had anything to say about it and girls had to stick together in a family of such strong males.

Anglea couldn't make out any words yet, she was close enough to see that Booth was being polite but he looked uncomfortable. _Good_, thought Angela viciously, _she hoped he was burn in hell uncomfortable, bringing the floozy to Brennan's lab. __What the hell was he thinking?_

"I'm sorry but Bones is tied up at the moment so she can't have lunch with you." Booth made Brennan's excuses much more politely than she would have.

"What are you doing?" Hodgins whispered in Angela's ear, slipping behind the same plant she was crouched behind and peering in the same direction Angela was staring so intently. Anglea barely stifled a squeal of surprise but she didn't take her eyes off of Booth and Padme.

"Shh," she cautioned Hodgins, straining to hear what she could. Hodgins spotted the pair and his eyes widened.

"Is that her? The home wrecker?" he clarified but Angela already knew what he meant. She simply nodded, waving her hand to indicate she wanted silence from him.

Hodgins shut up and studied the pair, his eyes narrowing in concentration. The young woman was very pretty and looked relaxed in Booth's company but Booth sure didn't look relaxed in hers. Well, Hodgins supposed that was understandable considering the circumstances but he took a closer look and was puzzled by what he saw. Booth constantly had his hands on Brennan in front of everyone but he wasn't touching his girlfriend at all, he wasn't even standing all that close, not like he was always bumping up against Brennan. They sure as hell didn't look like lovers to him but he trusted that Angela knew what she was talking about.

"But I happen to be free for lunch and I promise that we'll all have dinner together," Booth offered gallantly, seeing Padme's crestfallen expression.

"I would love to go to lunch with you," Padme smiled up at Booth. Hodgins smothered a laugh as Angela made a gagging motion with her finger in her mouth then watched with interest as her expression turned from disgust to horror. And Angela was utterly horrified as the implications of Booth having lunch with the floozy hit her. She had no illusions that Booth wouldn't guess her identity when the younger woman told him about their early morning encounter but it was the knowledge that he intended for _that woman_ and Brennan to have dinner together that made her decide she had no choice but to go through with a plan she had essentially talked herself out of. It was now or never because if she let those two meet the jig was up and she couldn't let that happen.

"Hodgie, you have to help me," she gasped, grabbing his arm.

"What's wrong?" he demanded, concerned by how pale she was.

"I don't have time to explain right now but I need you to send Booth to my office and distract _her_," the sneer in her voice told Hodgins who her was.

"Okay," he instantly agreed, as always, having her back. "How am I supposed to distract her?" he hissed as Angela began stealthily scooting backward, still in her crouched position.

"I don't know," she hissed back, "show her around the lab, whatever, until I give you the bat signal."

"Bat signal?" Hodgins couldn't help but laugh on that one.

"I'll call you when it's clear, okay?" she hissed. Her mind, focused on carrying out her plan, immediately threw up a road block. "Hodgins?" He glanced around. "Show her limbo first," she suggested and his eyes narrowed, wondering what the hell she was up to but before he could ask, she was gone. Sighing and not allowing himself to wonder what he was getting into, Hodgins scooted backward and stood, making his way toward the unlikely couple.

"I'm sorry to interrupt you, Booth, but Angela needs to see you in her office," Hodgins grinned at Booth and turned a polite smile on Padme, waiting for an introduction.

"Can't it wait, Hodgins? I was just about to go to lunch," Booth said impatiently.

"She seemed pretty impatient to see you, so I would have to say no it can't wait." Hodgins tugged on his earlobe in an unconsciously nervous gesture until Booth sighed and nodded. With an "I'll be right back" to his companion, Booth turned and strode toward Angela's office. Hodgins turned his attention to said companion and held out a hand.

"Hi, I'm Jack Hodgins, the resident bug and slime expert," he introduced himself with a self deprecating humor that Padme found charming.

"Hi, I'm Padme Dalaj," she returned with a warm smile, firmly shaking his hand.

"I'd be happy to show you around while you're waiting," Hodgins offered, not just because of Angela's request but because he saw the curiosity and wonder on Padme's face as her gaze wandered around the lab and his chest swelled with pride that he was a part of this place.

"But what about Seeley?" she asked, biting her lip in indecision, clearly wanting to get a better look around.

"I'm sure he won't mind and he can always track us down when he's ready," Hodgins laughed, jiggling his cell phone in front of her. With another smile, Padme nodded and Hodgins led her toward Limbo.

Booth stepped into Angela's office, looked around and found it completely empty. Running a frustrated hand through his hair, he stepped back onto the floor and looked around but didn't spot the artist. He automatically turned toward Brennan's office when he heard her voice raised in irritation and laughed out loud when he saw her exiting her office with Angela behind her. Angela had both hands firmly planted on Brennan's back and was steering her where she wanted her to go as if Brennan was a heavy piece of furniture that wouldn't move without putting some muscle behind it.

"I don't have time for this, Ange," Brennan whined over her shoulder. Angela kept pushing.

"Yes, you do, Bren. It won't take long then you can get back to your writing," Angela soothed, crossing the fingers on Brennan's back with some difficulty. "Let's go, Booth," Angela ordered, spotting Booth watching them with a grin.

"Where are we going?" he queried with a raised brow, casually falling into step beside them, reaching out to take Brennan's arm. Angela let her hands fall from Brennan's back and stepped up to Brennan's other side, wishing the home wrecker could see the partners together so she would just go away and none of this would be necessary.

"I need to show you something in the basement." Angela strode ahead and Booth and Brennan held a silent conversation, agreeing to just go with it and not ask too many questions, otherwise this could take all day.

Several minutes later, Brennan was looking around with interest. She had never been in this part of the basement and was curious about what treasures it might contain. "What do you want to show us, Angela?" she asked, excitement creeping into her voice.

"It's a surprise," Angela answered over her shoulder, not bothering to cross her fingers this time because boy, were they going to be surprised.

Booth looked around and found the place decidedly creepy despite the more than adequate lighting. He also found Angela's ushering them to a little used part of a deserted basement for something she had adamantly assured them that only they could help her with questionable but he held his silence for the moment.

"Crap," Angela sighed theatrically, patting her pants pocket in exaggeration, knowing that she had to act now. "I left my phone upstairs. Bren, can I borrow yours?" she asked, turning toward her best friend with big innocent eyes but Brennan didn't notice. She was too busy digging her phone out of her own pocket and handing it over. Booth did notice and his eyes narrowed as Angela began to fiddle with Brennan's phone and walk around, holding it up as if she was trying for better reception, his gut telling him the artist was definitely up to something.

"Do you think she's up to something?" Booth whispered to Brennan, eying Angela's back suspiciously. Brennan blinked in surprise at the question, her eyes narrowing as she considered the possibility.

"Damn, I can't get any reception," muttered Angela before Brennan could answer. "Booth, can I see your phone for a second?" she asked, holding out a hand. Booth hesitated and Angela huffed impatiently. "It's important, Booth, and I'll give it right back," she assured him, cringing inwardly at the lie. After a long, level look, Booth unhooked his cell from his belt and held it out, showing her a trust she didn't deserve and Angela cringed again. When she met the excited, trusting blue eyes of her best friend, she deflated completely and knew she couldn't do this.

No matter how much she wanted to help them, she couldn't lure them into the room she had prepared and lock them in until they were together. It had been an insane plan that would cost her the trust, respect and friendship of her best friend and possibly some jail time. At the moment, she couldn't even believe she had actually considered it a viable option. She was just beginning to realize how out of control she truly was but she couldn't help but wish this epiphany had hit her 15 minutes earlier so she didn't have to explain her behavior to the two people standing in front of her. They would never trust her again and she couldn't blame them since she didn't trust herself and hadn't for some time. Looking at Booth and Brennan with helplessness and regret shining in her eyes, Angela opened her mouth, having no idea how to salvage the situation, just as Booth's phone touched her fingertips. And began to ring.

"Booth," he barked into the phone, his narrowed eyes on Angela's face. Angela held her breath, afraid to hope for an interruption that would save her from her own idiocy.

"Yes, sir." Angela's attention was pulled from Booth's crisp, professional voice by Brennan stepping closer and laying a hand on her arm.

"Ange, are you okay?" she asked, her blue eyes awash with concern and Angela fought back tears, unable to believe she hadn't even considered that her recent actions might cause her to lose the precious friendship of this woman.

"No," Angela whispered, lowering her head in shame, "but I will be, Bren, and I'm going to be the best friend you could ever want," she promised, grabbing Brennan's hand and squeezing tightly, fervently promising herself that she would keep that promise no matter what.

"You already are the best friend I've ever had, Ange," Brennan returned sincerely, squeezing Angela's hand and Angela was torn between throwing herself into Brennan's arms and sobbing out her recent transgressions and coming up with a legitimate plan to derail tonight's proposed dinner and Brennan being introduced to the home wrecker. She was saved from having to make a choice when Brennan's attention shifted to Booth.

"I'll notify Dr. Brennan and we'll be there in 15 minutes," Booth finished his conversation and flipped his phone shut. "We have to go, Bones. We have a case." Turning to Angela, he didn't know what she had been up to but he knew it had been more than showing them something but, considering what he had just been told, he didn't have time to deal with it at the moment. "This will have to wait, Angela, but you can be sure we'll get back to it," he assured the wide eyed artist, warning clear in his voice. Angela nodded, pasting a bright smile to her face while silently thanking God and almost sagging in relief at the well timed interruption.

"What is it, Booth?" Brennan asked quietly, instantly in work mode.

"I'll explain on the way. We have a meeting with Hacker in fifteen minutes," he was already ushering her back the way they had come, Angela and what she had been up to completely forgotten. Watching them go, Booth's hand firmly on Brennan's back, his head bent close to hers, Angela couldn't help the flash of pleasure she felt that Booth had apparently completely forgotten that he had left his girlfriend up in the lab waiting on him to take her to lunch. She might not be proud of some of her actions lately but they appeared to be working, she thought happily, refusing to even consider what being so easily able to justify such uncontrolled behavior to herself said about her mental health.

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One last time, Daisy mentally reviewed her plan for flaws and still found it brilliant in its simplicity even if she did say so herself. She had spent several pleasant hours last night vengefully coming up with numerous ways to mess with the minds of the spawns of Satan but had finally come to the conclusion that she wouldn't enjoy life on the dark side. As much as she wanted to punish the four people responsible for her heartache, she just didn't possess the mindset to carry out a long term farce without giving herself away. She had needed something simple that could be achieved in one fell swoop and the idea that occurred to her had met all of her requirements. Plus, the irony of depriving the spawns of Satan of the one thing that they wanted so badly, were working so hard toward and had sacrificed her relationship with Sweets for was simply too perfect to pass up. Fortunately for her, she knew exactly how to do that. And she wouldn't even have to lie. Much.

She had carefully considered who she should approach with the information she had to impart and had swiftly discarded Cam because it was obvious that she had distanced herself from the group. She hadn't really considered Angela a viable option because the artist was very, very good at reading people and Daisy was afraid she would pick up on her nervousness and not believe her. Daisy needed them to believe her, she had one chance to pull this off and her window of opportunity was swiftly closing. _Her choosing not to directly approach Angela had nothing to do with the fact that Angela sometimes scared the crap out of her_, Daisy assured herself, _Angela simply had a role other than confidant to play in the upcoming drama._ That left Hodgins and Sweets and while Daisy would have preferred to use Hodgins, keeping her contact with Sweets to a minimum, it would be suspicious if she did that. Plus, she was certain that Sweets would be much easier to manipulate than the ever disbelieving Hodgins.

Yes, she knew that it was terrible of her to even consider it acceptable to manipulate her ex in this way but she considered that she was simply giving him his just deserves. She had been manipulated by him and Hodgins, however unintentionally and was hurt and angry that he had made no attempt to contact her after Friday night. Despite her telling him she didn't want to talk to him, she couldn't help but feel if Sweets really cared about her at all, he would have at least attempted an apology if not a reconciliation. Somewhat to her surprise, she didn't feel the slightest twinge of guilt that she was going to deliberately crush the hopes and dreams of Lance Sweets. In fact, the thought of how very unhappy four people would be this afternoon made her giddy with delight. Now, if she could just stop worrying about how it would feel to be face to face with Sweets for the first time since their breakup, she could make the call necessary to get him to the lab and get this show on the road.

Sighing and silently admonishing herself for her reluctance to speak to Sweets, she reached into her pocket for her cell phone just as the lab doors opened and Sweets walked in. _Ah, even better_, Daisy decided instantly, _since she hadn't had to lure him here, he would have no reason to be suspicious when she burst his bubble. Now, she only had to locate Angela and set the stage. _

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"So, Padme, have you known Booth long?" Hodgins asked casually, unable to resist prying while showing the young woman some of the lesser seen, less glamorous areas of the lab. To his surprise, he actually liked her, finding her pleasant and intelligent with a quirky sense of humor and he could certainly see how a man would find her physically attractive even thought he still couldn't picture her and Booth together.

"Not very long," she answered distractedly, stepping closer to a case containing a body that was being stripped by beetles in a sort of horrified fascination. "I just met him after Jared and I got engaged." She couldn't tear her eyes away from the contents of the case and completely missed the shock that flashed across Hodgins' face.

"What?" gasped Hodgins, flummoxed by this information. Telling himself to get it together when Padme glanced in his direction questioningly, Hodgins did his best to paste a congratulatory smile on his face. "I mean congratulations. I don't know Jared all that well but he really came through for us when we needed him." Hodgins' voice was calm but inside he was panicking, physically forcing himself to stand still and talk to Padme, to not arouse suspicion by running off to find Angela and stop her from whatever she had been up to that required him to distract Padme. Padme smiled and nodded, sensing this was high praise indeed from Hodgins.

"I kind of thought you were Booth's girlfriend," Hodgins burst out, barely aware of what he was saying, his need to find Angela and protect her even from herself battering away at him. He had no idea how Angela had so misunderstood the situation but he shuddered to think what her idea of fixing it would entail.

"There seems to be a lot of that going around," Padme snorted, the mingled disgust and anger in her voice gaining Hodgins full attention.

"What do you mean?" he asked candidly, surprised when Padme didn't hesitate to answer him. Padme was more than a little surprised herself but the anger she still felt over that encounter just couldn't be contained and Jared had talked about these people enough that she kind of felt like she knew them.

"One of Seeley's ex girlfriends showed up at his apartment this morning and made the same mistake. She didn't take it well," she summarized without going into details. Hodgins didn't need details, immediately knowing that it had been Angela and he could just imagine what she had said to this entirely innocent young woman.

"I'm sorry," he breathed sincerely, scrubbing a hand over his face, truly feeling awful that Padme had been drawn into their scheme. _This was getting entirely out of hand. _

"Not your fault," Padme assured him with a smile. "From the way she was acting, I honestly think she's unstable, maybe even dangerous," Padme confided thoughtfully and Hodgins cringed, fighting the need to explain and profusely apologize for all of them.

He was beginning to think maybe they had all gone a little crazy in their zeal to get Booth and Brennan together but he couldn't really deny Padme's assumption that Angela might be a little dangerous in her current mental state, having had the same thought himself. At the moment, he knew only two things without a doubt. Padme hadn't deserved Angela being completely horrible to someone who had simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time and Booth was going to go apeshit when he found out what she had done. Make that three things because Hodgins knew that it wouldn't take Booth long to make the connection and know Angela was responsible, then all hell would break loose. _And he couldn't let that happen no matter how much Angela deserved it,_ he realized with a sigh. _God, he was whipped but he wasn't about to desert the love of his life, he would protect her no matter what it took._

"What did Booth have to say about that?" he asked, his instincts telling him that Booth didn't know yet or they would all have heard the yelling.

"I haven't told him yet." Padme turned from her study of the flesh eating beetles and looked at her watch with a frown, suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable with sharing something Seeley might not want his colleague to know.

Although he was relieved that the crap hitting the fan wasn't imminent just yet, Hodgins was feeling uncomfortable himself, internally debating on the advisability of throwing himself on Padme's mercy, giving her the bare bones of the story and begging her not to tell Booth. _No,_ he decided regretfully_, even if she didn't immediately assume they were all psychotic and feel the need to inform Booth for his own protection, she would definitely tell Jared and Hodgins couldn't trust that Jared wouldn't pass it on. _They would be busted, it would be his fault, Angela would never forgive him and he just couldn't live with that. _There had to be another way._

Searching the recesses of his brain, he didn't even get a glimmer of a clue as to how to salvage the situation, ignoring the one thought that was persistent and crystal clear. _Oh what tangled webs we weave when first we practice to deceive_. That sure as hell didn't do him any good. Noticing how fidgety Padme was getting, he was seriously considering simply asking her not to tell Booth without an explanation, surely an exercise in futility but he had nothing better, when his cell phone rang. Grateful for the interruption, Hodgins grabbed it without checking the caller ID.

"Hodgins," he barked, having picked up on Booth and Brennan's habit of answering the phone with their last name instead of a traditional greeting.

"Hodgins, it's Booth," barked Booth right back. "I need you to find Padme and let her know that Bones and I have a case and I won't be able to make lunch." Booth was feeling a little sheepish that he had entirely forgotten about Padme's presence. He didn't have her cell number so Brennan had suggested that Hodgins could be trusted with task of courteously informing Padme of the present circumstances. It never dawned on Booth to ask Hodgins to have Padme call him and Hodgins wasn't about to volunteer to let him speak to the woman standing at his side. In his opinion, any conversation between the two had the potential for disaster.

"I can do that," he told Booth eagerly.

"Thanks," Booth offered before hanging up on him.

"That was Booth. He wanted me to let you know that he and Brennan have been called out on a case and he can't make lunch." Hodgins tried to force a note of sympathy in his voice but had a feeling his relief was on full display when Padme gave him a strange look. Realizing he needed to come up with some way to convince her not to rat Angela out to Booth before Padme departed and he lost the opportunity, Hodgins eyes narrowed.

"Okay," Padme agreed. Noting the kind of creepy, contemplative way Hodgins was looking at her, she subtly began edging away from him and toward the door, suddenly recalling just how weird Jared had assured her that all of the "squints" were. "I'll just be going then. Tell Seeley that Jared and I will see him at dinner," she called over her shoulder.

Hodgins didn't bother to try to call her back, the way she was making tracks across the floor told him it would be pointless. Then her last words hit him. _Crap._ Hodgins had no doubt that she would tell Booth what Angela had done tonight and the already strained atmosphere in the lab would become explosive. _He had to find Angela immediately._ She needed to know that she had made a huge mistake about Padme and the time to pay the piper was fast approaching. Hodgins didn't have much hope that damage control could salvage this situation but he guessed, considering her single mindedness in getting Booth and Brennan together, he could be grateful that Angela hadn't done worse, he told himself facetiously. But it wasn't funny. It was sad and pathetic and becoming painfully apparent that they were messing up their own lives much more than they were helping Booth and Brennan. With a resigned sigh, he set out to find Angela, not at all hopeful that he could convince her to see reason.


	27. Chapter 27

**Thanks for the reviews and please let me know what you think of Daisy's plan. **

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Angela entered the lab lost in thought, knowing that she had come uncomfortably close to irreversibly crossing a line down in that basement and that Booth was going to be asking for an explanation sooner or later. _What the hell was wrong with her? What she had done to Booth's girlfriend had been bad but she had been illogically able to justify that to herself, using the theory that she was simply protecting her best friend. _She could conceivably apply the same theory to the basement incident but she knew it wasn't true. She had been going to lock the pair in the basement for her own selfish purposes, to achieve a goal that she desired. She hadn't given a thought to what the two of them wanted since this whole thing had begun and it shamed her to acknowledge that even to herself.

Dropping her head onto her arms folded atop her desk, she honestly had no idea what she was going to say when Booth or Brennan asked her what she had wanted to show them in the basement. She certainly didn't have a secret find to thrill Brennan and make Booth roll his eyes at his partner's enthusiasm and the idea of lying about it after the promise she had made to herself and Brennan down there made her feel a little ill. _God, what was she doing? Was she really so afraid of her own life that she was willing to ruin her best friend's life in some insane attempt to come to grips with it? _She wasn't entirely certain what she was being right now but it sure as hell wasn't the best friend ever.

Hodgins quietly entered Angela's office, taking in her dejected posture and silently debating on whether or not to tell her what he had found out from Padme. _Yes,_ he finally decided, _Angela might not enjoy hearing it but maybe it would be a reality check for her, a way to convince her they needed to stop this game before they did some real damage._ "Ange," Hodgins said softly, moving closer and placing his hand on her shoulder. With a sigh, she raised her head and focused troubled, brown eyes on him. "Are you all right?" he asked tenderly, immediately sinking to his knees beside her chair and cupping her cheek in his hand.

"I don't think I am, Hodgins," she responded honestly, her hand covering his and pressing it into her face. "I almost locked Booth and Bren in the basement," she informed him candidly, feeling the self-flagellating need to be taken to task for her inappropriate behavior. Instead, her wicked sense of humor asserted itself when Hodgins' eyes widened comically in panic and he jumped to his feet, already on his way to the door. "Relax, Hodgins, I said almost. I didn't do it," she assured him, unable to hold back laughter as he literally sagged in relief.

"Don't scare me like that," he chided, his hand covering his pounding heart. "That's not funny, Ange. That would have been very, very bad," he scolded and she suddenly no longer felt like laughing.

"I know," she whispered, avoiding his eyes.

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Scanning the lab from her work station, Daisy noted that Hodgins was entering Angel'a office just short minutes after her own arrival and Sweets was headed in that direction. _Perfect. Showtime_.

Taking a deep breath and willing herself to look nervous and torn about what she was doing, Daisy stood up and trotted across the lab floor to intercept Sweets just outside Angela's open office door. "Lance," she said softly, reaching out to touch his arm, the catch in her voice real.

"Daisy," Sweets returned just as softly, his eyes drinking in the sight of her as if he was starving for it. And he was. He had spent the last week lonely and miserable, feeling like a part of him was missing, stopping himself from picking up the phone to call her, apologize and beg her to give him another chance more times than he could count.

Despite herself, Daisy felt her heart thump in her chest and her breath catch in her throat. This was going to be harder than she had thought but it had to be done. These people had to be taught a lesson, for everyone's sake. With the clarity of that thought, Daisy's determination to see this through reemerged and she lifted her chin, giving him a long, level look. "I need to talk to you." She was proud that her voice didn't sound as breathless and nervous as she felt, ruthlessly stomping out the twinge of conscience she felt when she saw the hope in his eyes. "About Dr. Brennan and Booth," she clarified, snatching her hand off of his arm, her voice getting louder in her agitation.

Looking around furtively, Sweets took Daisy's arm and pulled her into Angela's office, his attention so focused on Daisy that he didn't even notice the looks of surprise and speculation coming their way from Hodgins and Angela. "What about them?" he asked softly, his fingers unconsciously stroking her arm. Pulling her arm away with a shiver, Daisy crossed her arms over her chest and took a deep breath, knowing it was now or never.

"They know what you're doing," she said simply, her head swinging around at Angela's gasp. She had been really torn over whether to reveal this information to the interfering friends but, in the end, had decided her plan had much better odds of success if she did. She didn't think of it as a betrayal of Dr. Brennan since she was certain that Booth and Brennan were intent on full disclosure when they broke the news that they were together. She was simply getting a jump on things and she needed this.

"You told them?" the artist demanded in outrage.

"Yes, but they already knew," Daisy replied honestly, not even flinching at Angela's anger.

"I'll just bet they did," Angela snapped, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring daggers at Daisy. Daisy didn't even attempt to control her own rising temper. This wasn't exactly the scenario she had envisioned but it would just have to do.

"Oh, they knew," Daisy drawled insultingly, glaring right back, "and they were so disgusted with their _friends _messing with their lives that they're going to return the favor," she snapped. Okay, the disgusted part was from her own feelings but it had felt so good to get it out there that she wasn't about to take it back.

"And just how are they going to do that?" Angela queried in an amused, disbelieving voice that Daisy found insulting. Just for show, she turned toward the door without another word.

"Stop it, Angela," snapped Sweets, catching Daisy's arm just as she stepped through the door. Gently drawing her back into the room, he closed the door then turned her to face him, almost smiling at the glare she sent him, telling himself it was inappropriate to think about how hot she was when she was pissed. "What were you saying, Daisy?"

"I don't think I want to tell you anymore," she snapped, glaring in Angela's direction. Rolling their eyes at each other, Hodgins and Sweets shared a guy moment that said they would never understand women.

"Ange," Hodgins said, his voice telling Angela what he wanted. She looked at him incredulously, unable to believe what he was asking for. "It could be important, Ange," he whispered. "Please," he added and she caved.

"Fine," she snapped at him then turned her attention to Daisy baring her teeth in a parody of a smile. "I'm sorry I interrupted you," she said less than graciously. Daisy's hand reached for the door.

"Angela," demanded Hodgins and Sweets simultaneously. Angela blinked at the censure in Hodgins' voice and suddenly saw how childish and unreasonable she was being. Hodgins was right, this could be pertinent information.

"I apologize for interrupting," she said much more graciously, unaccountably amused when Daisy simply raised a brow and waited. "And my bad attitude," Angela conceded, her voice ripe with laughter at Daisy's audacity. Daisy nodded regally, to everyone's amusement.

"What did you mean by Dr. Brennan and Booth returning the favor, Daisy?" Hodgins asked quickly before the two women could tick each other off again. Daisy chewed on her bottom lip and looked so uncomfortable and torn that she had everyone's undivided attention.

"Maybe I shouldn't say anything but I overheard them talking in Dr. Brennan's office last night and I didn't think that them messing with you was any more fair than you messing with them," she rambled, speaking so quickly, everyone but Sweets, who was used to it, had trouble following.

"Daisy, calm down," Sweets said softly, his hand stroking up and down her arm. "Take a deep breath," he encouraged. "That's it," he soothed as she followed his instructions. "Are you okay, now?" he asked and she nodded, stepping away from his touch. Disappointed, he slipped his hands into his pockets. "Can you tell us the rest now?"

"They're going to tell you that they're involved and that they have been for a while so you'll stop trying to get them together," she said in a rush, dropping her eyes and turning away from Sweets so there was no chance he would see the deception there. There was absolute silence in the office for so long that Daisy's shoulders slumped, thinking they hadn't believed her. _Well, she had known there was always a chance they wouldn't. She had done the best she could, now she had no choice but to confess what she had just done to Dr. Brennan and resign._

"They're going to do what?" yelled Angela, the outrage in her voice clearly indicating she had bought it hook, line and sinker. Risking a quick glance around the room, Daisy saw that Sweets looked pale and shaken, Hodgins had a hand clamped over his mouth to stifle near hysterical laughter and Angela looked truly livid. Feeling almost giddy with success, Daisy quickly focused on Angela since the men hadn't really given her anything to respond to.

"Oh, please," Daisy snapped, "don't pretend like any of you have the right to judge them." Unbeknownst to Daisy, it was the perfect response, making her allegiances clear and cementing the information she had just given them as the gospel in their minds.

"Why would they do that?" Sweets asked in a bewildered little boy voice that Daisy usually found adorable. Right this minute, she found it ridiculous that he could even ask that question so sincerely.

"Ever hear of self defense?" she snapped, her success going to her head a little and convincing her that it wouldn't hurt anything to release a little angst before she left the office. Heaven knew, she certainly had enough of it that she could benefit from letting a little go. Sweets gaped at her snappy voice and snarky attitude, finding it almost disturbingly attractive. Daisy ignored him. "You people obviously don't care about what they want, only about what you think they should want," she ranted.

"That's not true," Angela objected out of habit.

"Really? So you had an in depth discussion with Booth about his girlfriend and he told you how profoundly unhappy he was with her before you all decided that he needed to discard her?" Daisy challenged, her outrage over her own treatment at the hands of this group funneling into her passionate defense of Booth's wronged girlfriend. Until she remembered that the girlfriend she was defending so ardently was a fiction of these people's imaginations. Whoa, she realized she was losing it and decided she needed to get out of this room before she said something that undid what she had managed to achieve. Afraid of what she would say if she opened her mouth again, Daisy walked to the door, opened it and strode through, chin held high, leaving three speechless people behind her.

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Angela, Hodgins and Sweets gave each other one long, uncomfortable look then adroitly avoided each other's eyes, all three knowing that Daisy's comments were right on the money.

"What are we going to do?" Angela whispered, sinking back into her chair and covering her face with her hands, not even realizing she had spoken the question aloud.

"Do?" gasped Hodgins and Sweets in tandem. Sharing an _Is she freaking kidding us_ look they then turned the look on the upset artist.

"Ange," Hodgins began softly, his fingers toying with his earlobe.

"Angela, didn't you hear what Daisy said?" broke in Sweets. "Dr. Brennan and Booth know. There is nothing left _to_ do." Sweets voice shook with the force of his emotions, chief amongst them fear of whatever payback would be coming their way from the partners.

Angela knew he was right but she was, illogically, hurt, angered and a little disillusioned that Booth and Brennan would stoop to lying to them about having a long term relationship. Not as distressed as she would have been to find out they had been sneaking around behind everyone's back and all of this chaos had been completely unnecessary, mind you, but still pretty freaking upset. The irony of her being upset that Booth and Brennan were going to mess with them didn't escape her but it didn't help her let it go either. "There must be something we can do," she insisted, raising her head and giving Hodgins and Sweets a pleading look.

"_Are you freaking kidding me_?" Sweets demanded. "Have you completely lost your mind, Angela?" Angela's eyes narrowed at the insult as she watched the young psychologist pace back and forth in front of her desk, one hand in his pocket and the other running distractedly through his hair.

"No, Sweets, I haven't lost my mind," she assured him firmly, "but I have met the home wrecker and you can't even begin to imagine how truly awful she is. We can't let Booth wind up with someone like that and break Brennan's heart in the process," Angela insisted stubbornly, even as her brain told her it was over and she should just give it up.

"Um, yeah, Ange, about that, she's not so bad and she's not…," Hodgins began and she turned on him, hit by an unexpected, savage jealousy at his defense of the other woman.

"Please don't tell me that you fell for her, too," she practically spat, then her eyes narrowed. "Maybe you should ask her out if you liked her so much then all of our problems would be solved," she taunted, hating herself for being such a bitch but unable to stop. Hodgins was stunned by the unprovoked attack and then he began to get angry. He was just trying to help her out here and he didn't deserve her sarcasm or her judging him. His anger and those thoughts gave him a sudden clarity that he'd never had regarding this particular situation and left him disgusted with all of them when he thought of them scheming behind their friends' backs.

"Wait? You've met her, too, Hodgins?" Sweets asked incredulously. "When? Where?" Taking the opportunity to get his temper under control, Hodgins chose to answer Sweets before addressing Angela's ridiculous accusation.

"She came to the lab this morning..," once again Hodgins was interrupted.

"Oh my God," Sweets gasped, deflating into a chair and dropping his head into his cupped hands.

"Exactly," muttered Angela.

"Her name is Padme Dalaj," Hodgins continued, ignoring the drama from the other two. "And she's not Booth's girlfriend, she's Jared's fiancé." Chiding himself for how much he had enjoyed dropping that little bombshell, he turned to Angela, ignoring how she had blanched at the information he had just thrown out there. "She was nice, Angela, something you might have noticed if you had taken the time to even talk to her this morning instead of jumping to conclusions and attacking her." He nodded at the question in the wide brown eyes staring at him from a pale face, hating what he was about to do but it was necessary for his own self respect and sanity. "Yeah, she mentioned your little encounter and you can be sure she'll mention it to Booth, too and he is going to be pissed. I'll take my share of the heat for everything up until now, even that, but, Ange, this is it. This whole thing is completely out of control and I can't be a part of it anymore, not even for you. I'm out." Hodgins couldn't believe the wave of relief that washed over him at just voicing those words, it felt like a weight that he hadn't even realized he was carrying had been lifted from his shoulders.

"What?" whispered Angela, unable to believe that Hodgins, her Hodgins was deserting her when she needed him the most.

"What did you do to her, Angela?" squeaked Sweets nervously, not sure he could handle his share of the kind of heat Angela on a mission could bring down on his head. Angela and Hodgins ignored him, concentrating on each other.

"I'm crazy about you, Ange, and I would do pretty much anything to make you happy," Hodgins told her, holding her eyes with his and reaching out to take her hand, "but this has gone way too far. The fact that Booth and Brennan are willing to pretend to be involved to get us to back off should tell you that. If that doesn't do it for you, how about the fact that you attacked an innocent woman because of who you thought she was?" Angela's eyes dropped and he knew he had made his point. "Ange, you need to stop this while you can still call Brennan a friend at all, much less your best friend," he urged earnestly, steeling himself not to reach out and wipe away the single tear rolling down her cheek. Knowing he had done all he could and the rest was up to her, he gave her hand a last squeeze, straightened and took a seat, unable to walk out on her when she looked so devastated. He had meant what he said, he was out, but he needed to be nearby in case she needed him.

_Oh, God, what had she done?_ Angela asked herself. She felt battered and bruised by Hodgins' words, unable to believe how far from sanity and common decency she had strayed in her quest to unite Booth and Brennan. She wanted to curl up on her couch and bawl her eyes out for the hurt she had inadvertently caused Sweets and Daisy by just starting this thing in the first place and she didn't even want to think about the deliberately cruel things she had said to Padme. She wanted to grieve for her friendship with Brennan because she knew even if Brennan forgave her for what she had done, things would never be exactly the same between them again. She wanted to curl up in Hodgins' lap and tell him she was crazy about him, too, that she wanted to be with him and this whole, crazy, out of control thing had been some convoluted attempt to prove to herself that she could make it work with him this time around. She was so confused by her feelings that she wasn't entirely sure what she wanted and she didn't really have time to figure it out right now. The one thing she did know was that Hodgins was right, this had to stop now before she destroyed anyone else's life, including her own.

"You're right," she said, lifting her head and meeting warm blue eyes filled with concern for her, just that show of support from Hodgins easing her pain and anxiety but compounding her guilt. Guilt that she was seeking and receiving comfort and support from her ex instead of Wendell, the man she should be asking for those things and that was something she was going to have to make some decisions about. Soon but not right now. Right now she had other, just as important, decisions to make. Chief among them, _how was she going to make this right with her best friend without losing that friendship forever?_

"Good, you're all here," Cam said, opening the door and sticking just her head inside. "I need everyone in the lab," she ordered briskly.

"We're kind of busy here, Cam," Hodgins said quietly, never taking his eyes off of Angela's pale, drawn face.

"Whatever it is, is going to have to wait," Cam insisted.

"It's important, Cam," Sweets added, his attention divided between the two women.

"I can see that," returned Cam, her voice softening, "but Booth and Brennan are on their way to brief us on a big case and I need all hands on deck." Cam shrugged and pulled her head out of the office, hurrying across the floor to speak the interns who were gathered around the platform. Sweets got up from his seat and walked to the door, staring at the unusual sight.

"This must really be something big," he said thoughtfully and it was obvious to Hodgins and Angela that he was anxious to get out there and find out exactly what it was.

"Why don't you go on and check it out?" urged Hodgins. Sweets gave Angela a concerned look but when she waved him off, he opened the door and trotted out without a backward glance.

"You should go ahead, too, Hodgins," Angela said softly and Hodgins shook his head.

"I'm good right where I am," he argued.

"I know and I really appreciate it," she said with a soft, sad smile, "but I need just a minute to myself."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," her smile turned more genuine. "You should go ahead before Cam goes on the warpath. I'll be there in a few minutes." Hodgins held her eyes for several seconds before nodding and starting toward the door.

"It's going to be okay, Ange," he assured her without turning. "They may be angry but Brennan is nothing if not loyal to her friends. They will eventually forgive us."

As he left the room, Angela lowered her head to the folded arms atop her desk and let the tears flow, holding onto those words of comfort and hope with both hands. Right now they were all she had.


	28. Chapter 28

**Hey, guys, this one is a little short but I hope you like it. Let me know. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Alas, still not mine.**

Ten minutes later, Angela raised her head and dried her eyes, wiping her tear streaked cheeks, knowing what she had to do. Because of Daisy's announcement, she knew there was no chance that Booth and Brennan would remain ignorant of their machinations and she cringed in dread at facing their anger, especially when they found out what she had said to Padme. She was totally ashamed of her actions with the younger woman, knowing that she owed her a profound apology which she would personally deliver as soon as she had dealt with Booth and Brennan. In her estimation, the only adult option that she had regarding the Padme situation was to simply come clean with Booth and Brennan immediately and hope that her owning up to what she had done would defuse some of their anger.

Silently praying that Brennan was simply angry and not so disgusted with her that she permanently terminated their friendship, Angela stood on shaky legs and walked out onto the main floor. Her attention was immediately caught by the bustle of activity, interns and grad students scurrying about carrying equipment and supplies and she frowned at the controlled chaos. Glad for even a momentary distraction from her inner turmoil, she grabbed Wendell's arm as he hurried past with a smile for her.

"What's going on?" she asked quietly, stepping out of the way of a grad student whose arms were so loaded down with collection kits that he couldn't really see where he was going.

"No idea," Wendell said, pulling her to safety beside the platform before telling her what he did know, "but it must be big. Cam just came out and gave us a list of stuff to start loading into the mobile lab."

"Where is she?" asked Angela, deciding to go to the source but she didn't see her.

"Booth and Dr. Brennan came in a few minutes ago and they all went into Cam's office," Wendell explained. "I really need to get back to work," he said reluctantly, gesturing to the pile of supplies in his arms. "I'll see you later. Okay?" Angela nodded and absently patted him on the arm, her curiosity fully engaged. Whistling, Wendell returned to his task and Angela hurried over to Hodgins and Sweets who were standing together deep in discussion.

"What's up, guys?" she asked and both men looked at her critically, both looking relieved that she no longer seemed to be in danger of going off the deep end. Hodgins gave her a soft smile and she returned it, unconsciously moving closer to him.

"We're going camping," Sweets supplied happily, immediately diverting Angela's attention from Hodgins.

"What?" she asked, her confusion obvious.

"Camping, Ange, you know the great outdoors, being one with nature," Hodgins couldn't resist teasing.

"I know what camping is, Hodgins," Angela rolled her eyes, "and you know that I don't do camping." She didn't even try to suppress her shudder of horror at the thought. Her idea of roughing it was a hotel that didn't have room service. There was no freaking way she was sleeping in a tent in the woods.

Hodgins laughed, having already been well acquainted with her views on roughing it. "Come on, Ange, where's your spirit of adventure? Besides, I doubt that tents will be involved. Surely they have some kind of basic housing?" Hodgins directed his question at Sweets.

"Yes, they would need to provide housing but I'm certain it's very basic and quite likely to be overcrowded considering the number of people who will be accompanying us," Sweets mused, his eyes narrowed on the busy interns, trying to get an accurate count.

"So you're saying we should call dibs on the best digs?" Hodgins asked, his eyes also following the interns.

"Probably not a bad idea," allowed Sweets thoughtfully. Angela's eyes ping ponged between the two men and she was getting more confused by the second, having no idea what they were talking about.

"What are you two talking about?' she demanded but before they could answer, her lagging brain put it all together and she felt like giving herself a duh slap to the forehead. Granted, she had been distracted but she usually wasn't so slow on the uptake. "We're all going on the case? Really?" she asked suspiciously because this had never happened before.

"Yep," grinned Hodgins and Sweets nodded. Hodgins crossed his arms over his chest and watched Angela's grin widen in excitement and anticipation and waited for her to recall their earlier discussion. It didn't take long.

"Camping?" she wailed, utter disgust in her voice. Hodgins broke into laughter and Sweets rolled his eyes.

"Not camping, Angela," Sweets assured her, seeing that Hodgins was too amused to be any help, "just maybe roughing it a little."

"Roughing it? I don't do roughing it, either," she wailed and Sweets wanted to cover his ears as her voice was getting so loud it was uncomfortable to be this close to it. Hodgins was laughing so hard he was bent over holding his stomach and Angela looked like she was about to say something else. Sweets covered his ears just to be on the safe side but his hearing was saved by Cam stepping onto the platform and calling for everyone's attention.

"Okay, people, you've all probably figured out that something is going on and I will get around to explaining it to everyone. But right now, I need our regular team, Sweets, Wendell, Fisher, Mr. Nigel-Murray and Daisy Wicks in the conference room for a briefing with Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan." Cam nodded in satisfaction as the interns immediately moved to obey her and turned to the others. "Please continue to load the supplies I requested and report to Clark for further instructions. Thank you." She finished and tried to leave the platform before being surrounded by curious subordinates but she didn't quite make it.

Catching sight of Booth and Brennan leaving Cam's office and entering Brennan's, Angela tuned out Cam mid-speech and turned to follow the partners, needing to talk to them immediately before she lost her nerve or they got so caught up in this new case that she lost her chance.

Booth followed Brennan into her office, knowing that she was upset over this new case and knowing that she would still give it 110% of herself, just like she always did. Not giving a damn if anyone saw them or not, Booth pulled her into his arms and bent his head as her forehead came to rest on his chest.

"This is going to be bad," she whispered.

"Yeah, it is," he agreed, his arms tightening around her, "but this is what we do and whoever did this needs to be caught." She nodded, then simply stood in the warm, comforting circle of his arms, steeling herself for what was to come. Closing his eyes and resting his head against hers, Booth did the same.

Angela arrived just in time to see Booth pull Brennan against him and wrap his arms around her. Brennan leaned her head against Booth's chest and her arms encircled his waist, his head bending to speak softly into her ear. Angela's eyes widened then narrowed critically. _They had clearly seen her coming and chosen to break the news of them as a couple through her but damn they_ _were good_, she admitted to herself. _If she hadn't known something like this was coming, she would have been completely convinced and, no doubt, bouncing around and squealing with glee like an idiot. _ In that instant, she was oddly grateful to Daisy for the heads up.

Clearing her throat, she walked into the office. To her surprise, they didn't immediately jump apart and act all flustered. Booth simply raised his head and turned his gaze to her. "Did you need something, Angela?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, I need to talk to you guys," she began nervously.

"Can it wait?" Booth interrupted, his hands running up and down Brennan's back.

"Yeah, I guess," Angela started to take the easy way out then gathered her courage and stiffened her spine. "No," she corrected herself, "it really can't wait, Booth." Brennan finally lifted her head and dropped her arms from around Booth but didn't step away.

"What is it, Ange?" she asked, giving her friend her full attention, a little surprised that the artist wasn't squealing and bouncing around the room at having caught her and Booth in an embrace. This wasn't the way they had planned to tell her best friend but it was out there now and the how didn't really matter.

Now that the moment of truth was upon her, Angela faltered for just a second, dropping her eyes but she quickly rallied. "I wanted to apologize to both of you for trying to interfere in your personal lives and I promise never to do it again," she said, meeting Brennan's eyes levelly, feeling like she was in the principal's office about to be reprimanded for shooting spit wads at the science teacher during class.

"Okay, we accept your apology," Brennan responded, unable to work up any anger at her friend. All of her anger was currently focused on this new case. Angela blinked in surprise. That had been way too easy but since they seemed to be in such a forgiving mood, she decided to trot out the rest of her transgressions without delay.

"And I'm sorry about almost locking you in the basement this morning," she continued. Booth lifted a brow but his lips twitched at the thought of a locked door holding a former Army Ranger and a resourceful genius.

"I told you she was up to something," he told Brennan.

"Yes, you did," she agreed with a nod. _Wow, they really were taking this well,_ Angela decided, _maybe they wouldn't completely freak and kill her when she told them about Padme._

"And I'm really, really, really sorry about…," she was cut off midsentence by Cam stepping into the office.

"Everyone's in the conference room waiting on you three, so let's move it, people. Chop, chop," she clapped her hands together for emphasis but didn't budge so they knew she wasn't going to leave the room until they did.

"Just a minute, Cam," Booth ordered. "What were you saying, Angela?" he asked but Angela shook her head. After the way she had treated Cam over what she had done to Brennan, there was no way she could confess to doing the same thing to someone else in front of her.

"I'll tell you later," she assured them, turning to hurry out of the room.

"Angela," Brennan called and she turned back, "aren't you going to say anything?" she asked suspiciously, gesturing between her and Booth.

"About what?" Angela asked, giving Brennan the big, innocent eyes. She wasn't trying to mess with them but she wasn't going to be messed with either so she considered it an acceptable alternative to simply ignore the situation. With a grin, she turned and left the room.

Booth and Brennan blinked at each other. They had anticipated a lot of reactions from Angela when she found out about them but a non reaction hadn't made the list. Cam cleared her throat and gestured for them to get a move on which they immediately did.

"That was weird," Brennan whispered, bewilderment in her voice.

"No, baby, that was way past weird," Booth whispered back, simply having no explanation for their most vocal proponent not even commenting on their obvious intimacy. He and Brennan had been planning on making an announcement to the squint squad the next day but hadn't had a chance to discuss how getting a new case would affect that decision. And they didn't have a chance now, as they reached the conference room. Booth caught Brennan's hand in his and gave it a quick squeeze which she returned before gesturing for her to precede him into the room. They would have to figure out Angela's weirdness and the personal stuff later. It was time to go to work and kick some bad guy ass.


	29. Chapter 29

**Hey, guys, sorry for the delay. I was lucky enough to have to get a cast for my wrist and it is somewhat difficult to type with that restriction. Please let me know what you think of the chapter.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth followed Brennan into the conference room and pulled out one of the two remaining chairs for her, slipping into the one beside her. What he had to tell these people was bad enough, he had no desire to be standing at the head of the table being stared at while he did it. Slipping one hand under the table, he gripped Brennan's hand and glanced around to find everyone's excited eyes riveted on them. But even vibrating with excitement the squints were still squints, quietly, patiently, respectfully waiting for an explanation. He truly hated to burst their bubble but, unfortunately, he didn't have a choice.

"What I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this room," Booth said, his eyes moving from squint to squint to let them know how serious he was about this. Booth almost laughed when they collectively leaned forward and several opened their mouths to ask questions but managed to restrain their avid curiosity, in typical squint fashion. Except for the single non squint in the room.

"So spill already," ordered Angela, "and just so you know, I don't do camping so I'm going to require more adequate accommodations than tents," she threw in impishly, batting her eyes at him, feeling unaccountably cheerful since at least attempting a full confession of her sins to the partners. Everyone in the room laughed and a lot of the tension evaporated, even from Booth and Brennan.

"Yeah, Ange, I'll get right on that," Booth tossed back, giving Brennan's hand one last squeeze then releasing it and turning his attention to the briefing. "Three years ago, a group from a private summer camp in Virginia was taken on an overnight camping trip by two of the counselors. When they didn't return the next day, an extensive search was organized and every inch of the mountains around the camp were searched but they never even found a trace of their campsite, much less any sign of the kids or the counselors."

"How many kids?" Hodgins asked quietly, in the overpowering silence of the room.

"Five," whispered Brennan. "Five," she repeated after clearing her throat.

"Somebody found them and they're dead," Angela guessed in a whisper but everyone in the room knew they wouldn't have been called in if the kids were alive.

"Yes," Booth said bluntly.

"We don't know that, Booth," Brennan interrupted, her need to be precise overruling her need to get this over with.

"You're right, Bones," he allowed, meeting her eyes with a soft smile. "What we do know," he continued, turning back to the ominously quiet squints, "is that 3 days ago, a man was arrested for illegal hunting and a human skull was found in his possession. The local coroner already had dental records on the missing people from the camp and identified the skull as belonging to one of the counselors."

"That's awful and deeply disturbing in a Deliverance kind of way," conceded Hodgins, "but how do we know this counselor didn't fall off a cliff or something?"

"The gunshot to the back of the head was a good clue," Booth told Hodgins sarcastically, then scrubbed a hand over his face. "Sorry," he offered and Hodgins nodded, knowing how much Booth hated cases involving kids. "When the hunter led the authorities back to where he found the skull, they started to dig and uncovered what appears to be a mass grave."

Everyone looked at Brennan expecting her to vocally object to her crime scene being compromised but she had gotten that rant out of her system in a stunned Hacker's office. Booth had strutted out of the office behind her sure that Hacker would never make another advance on Brennan now because she had scared the crap out of him with her tantrum and Booth couldn't really blame the guy for his reaction. Dr. Temperence Brennan in a royal snit was something to behold. Brennan simply blinked back at everyone and Booth went on. "This mass grave happens to be on federal land so that automatically makes it our case."

"Why all the secrecy?" asked Wendell.

"Because the media will be all over this as soon as it gets out," Sweets supplied. "The FBI and the local authorities don't want a repeat of the circus from three years ago until we're sure what we're dealing with."

"He's right," seconded Booth, "people will be crawling all over that mountain so I need you people to get in, do your thing and get out." Brennan saw the confusion on some of the interns' faces and knew they needed to hear this in their terms.

"We will be taking the mobile lab, exhuming the remains and attempting identification on site. In essence, we are taking the lab to Virginia. That's why all of you are necessary," Brennan supplied and Booth noted how the interns relaxed and nodded at having their roles so specifically identified. "I'm not sure of the accommodations," she said with a glance at Angela, "but I am certain that considering the reason we'll be there, we'll make due." Angela knew Brennan had meant the comment to be factual, not insulting but, in light of why they were going on this trip, she was a little ashamed of her concern for her own comfort. "I will reiterate Booth's request that you don't discuss this case with anyone outside this room, not even the other people in the lab." Brennan didn't threaten but, then again, she didn't have to, these people had the utmost respect for her and the interns were in awe of her. Booth knew they wouldn't betray their mentor. With a nod in Booth's direction, Brennan indicated that she was finished.

"Okay, we don't have any idea how long this will take but we need everyone to go home, pack a bag and meet back here in three hours, at 5:00PM," he specified, checking his watch. Holding up his hand to stall the questions coming his way, he motioned toward Cam. "Bones and I have to go but Cam has details on what you need to pack and we'll see everyone back here at 5," he said hurriedly, pulling back Brennan's chair and shooting Cam an apologetic look for throwing her to the wolves. Rolling her eyes, Cam waved them off and turned to field the questions being shot at her.

"Okay, people," she said loudly, holding up her hand for quiet, "we don't have a lot of time to finish getting everything together but we have a long drive ahead of us, so you're going to have to hold your questions until then. My understanding is that the terrain is pretty rough and we will be doing some hiking, so please pack comfortable clothing and shoes. Now, I need everyone to go give Clark a list of what they're working on here and get going. Oh, and be sure to take a jacket, the nights get cold in the mountains," she called after the departing interns, feeling very much like a den mother about to take her scout troop on a field trip.

"Yes, Mom," giggled Angela and Cam turned with a wry grin of her own to face the three people left in the room. Biting her lip, she internally debated whether to mention that Angela, Sweets and Hodgins needed to shelve their plotting for the moment. She really, really didn't want to have that conversation but she couldn't have the three of them continuing with their pranks while they were on a case. She honestly thought they were all professional enough for that not to happen but she just couldn't take that chance.

"Funny," she acknowledged Angela's comment. "I need you three to behave yourselves and lay off Booth and Brennan while we work the case," she said in her sternest I am the boss voice, noting the insulted looks on all three faces with some amusement.

"We would never compromise a case for personal reasons, Cam," Sweets objected. Hodgins and Angela nodded their vehement agreement.

"Besides, they know all about what we were trying to do so we don't have a choice but to give it up," Angela piped in honestly.

"What, exactly, do they know?" gasped Cam, her eyes widening in panic that her secret had been revealed to Booth. The other three exchanged a surprised look, not realizing until that second that they weren't entirely sure what the pair knew. Daisy hadn't been that specific.

"Um, I guess we don't know exactly what they know other than that we're trying to get them together," Hodgins admitted, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"And that they're going to try and convince us that they're involved so we'll back off," Angela chirped helpfully.

"What?" asked Cam, her brow furrowed in confusion. "That doesn't sound like them at all. I would think they would just confront us and tell us to back off."

"I would normally agree with you, Cam," Sweets spoke up, "but I think they want to teach us a lesson in the process of discouraging us and such a diabolically simple plan has Booth written all over it," he surmised. Cam didn't necessarily agree but she wasn't going to argue the point, she had too much else to do.

"Yeah and you guys should be prepared because they've already started," Angela warned. "They saw me following them into Brennan's office and got all snuggly and they were good, too."

"Ah, so they've decided to use visual aids instead of just making an announcement," Hodgins nodded approvingly. "Simple but effective. Smart but I wouldn't expect anything less from Dr. B."

"How do you know they were pretending, Angela?" asked Cam. She listened with wide eyes as Angela patiently recounted their encounter with Daisy earlier that day, surprised that Daisy would rat out her heroine. But she hadn't been there and she trusted the other three to be able to tell if the excitable Ms. Wick had been lying.

"Are we going to pretend to believe them?" Hodgins asked, his voice rife with amusement.

"Not me," Cam said instantly, "I'm still out of this thing," she added.

"Me either," snorted Angela.

"I don't think confronting them about it right now is a good idea. None of us need the added stress," Sweets agreed thoughtfully. "I would have to say that until this case is over with simply ignoring any overt acts to convince us they're a couple would be best." He didn't add that he would be keeping a close eye on the partners, extremely interested in just how far Booth and Brennan would go to convince them they were a couple now.

"I'm good with that," Hodgins concurred. "Should we say something to the interns so they don't say anything to Booth and Brennan?"

"Oh, please," laughed Angela. "The interns are terrified of Brennan and Booth has a gun. Trust me, Hodgie, they aren't going to comment on anything those two do." The other three pondered that comment for a long, silent moment and finally had to agree that Angela was most likely correct.

"Now that the important stuff is decided," Cam said wryly, "we have a job to do so let's move it, people." Nodding, they filed out of the room, all four feeling traces of lingering amusement at the thought of how surprised Booth and Brennan were going to be when no one even noticed they were pretending to be a couple. That could certainly prove to be worth a few laughs and with a case this awful looming before them, they could use all of those they could get.

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"Booth, I really think it might be best if you meet Jared and I go back to the Jeffersonian and help Cam organize everything for this trip," Brennan said a little fretfully 20 minutes later. It wasn't that Brennan was afraid of facing Jared after Booth had broken the news about them. But she couldn't help being a little nervous that Jared's enthusiasm for the relationship might have waned a bit since last night and Brennan had no desire to face the stress that would induce on top of the demanding case they were currently facing. _Oh, who was she kidding?_ The simple truth was that she hadn't been entirely comfortable in Jared's company since that disaster brought on by their date and she would just as soon avoid him. But that wasn't possible any longer and she was going to have to get used to that.

"Let Cam do her job, Bones." Booth ran a soothing hand down her back and pushed open the door to the Founding Fathers, scanning the interior for his brother. Spotting him and Padme seated at a table in the back, Booth raised a hand in greeting then turned to Brennan. "Jared is happy for us, Baby," he said, smoothing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "And even if he isn't, it's none of his business. I love you and you love me and that's all that matters here." Taking her hand, he gave her such a beautiful smile that her heart melted in her chest. "Okay?"

"Okay," she nodded, not even aware of the brilliant smile that spread across her face. Taking a deep breath, she allowed him to lead her across the room to join Jared and Padme who had their heads close together.

"Would you look at that?" Jared whistled through his teeth, his eyes locked on his tough FBI agent of a brother so gently smoothing the hair back from his partner's face. Jared had known that Seeley cared about Brennan, even back when his sense of competitiveness had kicked in and he had made a play for her himself. Stupid, but then he had done a lot of stupid things back then. He'd made the mistake of not realizing how deeply his brother already loved the anthropologist and he still felt guilty for the damage he had done. In fact, before he had met Padme, he'd had no idea how deeply he could feel for someone other than his family and he had just assumed Seeley felt the same way. But looking at his brother and Brennan now, he suddenly knew that he still had no idea exactly how much his brother loved the woman he was smiling at so tenderly and he would be truly lucky if he ever experienced that depth of emotion.

"I think it's sweet," Padme interrupted Jared's musings and Jared turned his head to smile at her in much the same way Booth had just smiled at Brennan.

"My brother isn't sweet," he argued, attempting to explain how he was feeling, "he's a badass former sniper who puts away sick freaks for a living."

"He's in love, Jared," Padme said softly, leaning closer and taking his hand.

"Yeah, I can see that," Jared conceded with a grin. Gnawing his lower lip, he suddenly wondered if saying something about the psycho stalker ex would be the best thing to do at the moment. "Maybe we shouldn't say anything about his ex coming around his apartment."

"Why?" Padme asked, genuinely puzzled. She and Jared had talked about it and decided that if Booth and Brennan had trouble headed their way, they deserved a heads up. Looking at them now, Jared wondered if his brother would see it that way or if he would simply think Jared was trying to come between them again.

"You know what our childhood was like, baby, and I guess I just never considered that either one of us could open up to anyone, not enough to ever be like that," he reiterated, pointing at Booth and Brennan. Padme regarded him thoughtfully, not getting what he was trying to tell her.

"And?" she queried.

"And I almost messed that up," Jared confessed the one thing he had never told her because of his guilt and shame over what he had done. Oh, at the time he had felt neither because he had generally been too wasted to care about much of anything. That wasn't entirely true, he admitted to himself, he had known that his brother had the hots for the good doctor and something dark deep inside him had reared its ugly head. He had seen something that he liked but, more importantly, something he could snatch from his brother's grasp and he had gone for it, regardless of who got hurt in the process because he had known it wouldn't be him.

Since he had gotten sober, he had come to understand that he'd had a lot of anger built up inside him. Anger at his father, his childhood and even his brother, as stupid as that sounded considering Seeley had spent most of his life protecting his little brother. But things were on their way to being good, really good, with Seeley now. For the first time ever, they were equals, adult brothers who had come to terms with their past and were now reaching out to each other and Jared was suddenly uneasy about throwing a wrench into that, even with the truth.

Padme patiently waited for Jared to expound but he didn't and she still didn't understand. Looking toward the door, she saw that Booth and Brennan had stopped at the bar, presumably, to order a drink but they didn't have a lot of time.

"How did you almost mess that up?" Padme needed him to cut to the chase here.

"I tried to date Temperence," he confessed as it was one of the seven deadly sins but Padme was still confused. Dr. Brennan was a beautiful woman and Jared trying to date her didn't sound all that bad.

"Jared, I'm sorry but I'm just not getting whatever it is you're trying to tell me and we don't have a lot of time," she pointed to where Booth was impatiently tapping the bar, obviously in a hurry for the arrival of their drinks.

"Okay, then," Jared took a deep breath and focused his full attention on his fiancé, knowing this was the worst thing he would ever have to tell her about himself. "I knew how Seeley felt about her or at least I suspected and I didn't care. No," he stopped himself, determined to be completely honest with her, "it wasn't anywhere near that innocent. I liked the package," he admitted, dropping his eyes, "but deep down I was jealous." Jared flinched as he said the words aloud for the first time.

"Jared, everyone gets jealous of what their siblings have sometimes. It's nothing to be ashamed of," Padme reassured him softly, linking their fingers and smiling at him softly.

"Sometimes you give me way too much credit," he said, returning her smile. "But the truth is that I saw how much he cared about her and I was afraid that if he loved her like that, he wouldn't love me as much, wouldn't be there to bail me out when I needed it. I was selfish and cruel and I simply didn't care who got hurt as long as it wasn't me and, until I met you, there was no chance of that because I didn't care enough about anyone else for them to have the power to hurt me."

Padme saw the worry in his eyes that what he had just told her would lessen him in her eyes somehow and her heart melted. That wasn't going to happen, she loved him too much to let juvenile behavior in the past affect their relationship and she thought she might just be able to make him feel a little better about what he had done. "Jared, that's not true," she scolded softly. "Don't you see that you loved your brother maybe a little too much?" Jared's brow furrowed but Padme could see that he was listening. "Jared, you thought of him as your father. It was only natural that you would be jealous of anyone else in his life, anyone who might take some of his attention away from you. But you know that wouldn't happen. You're the one who told me that your brother had always had your back and always would and you have to know that won't ever change. He'll always love you, Jared, and we should be glad that he's found someone who can make him happy," she finished softly, gazing into his eyes and seeing how much he wanted to believe her.

"Thank you," he said softly, reaching out to stroke her cheek.

"You're welcome but I only told you the truth," she grinned, "and I won't say anything about the psycho stalker if you don't want me to, but you should think about it. They should know they could have trouble headed their way." Jared nodded to indicate he was considering her words, not really sure what his decision would be.

"What trouble?" Booth asked.

"What psycho stalker?" Brennan asked simultaneously. Padme's and Jared's heads jerked around and their mouths dropped open as they realized the choice had been taken from them.

"What trouble, Jared?" Booth repeated, pulling out a chair for Brennan then seating himself and taking a long sip of the coffee in his hand.

"I'm guessing it has to do with the psycho stalker, Booth," Brennan said helpfully.

"Yeah, baby, I'm guessing you're right," Booth smiled at her and took her hand, linking their fingers, really liking the freedom to touch her in public as much as he wanted. Jared and Padme looked at each other and snickered, thinking Brennan had made a joke. Looking back at Brennan's bland face and Booth's raised brow, they saw they were wrong.

"All righty then," Jared drawled, "so what's up, Seeley?"

"That's what I'm wondering, Jared," Booth returned. "I'm waiting to hear about the psycho stalker," he clarified just in case Jared didn't know what he was talking about.

"Some chick showed up at your apartment this morning and mistook Padme for your girlfriend. It wasn't pretty," Jared shrugged and Padme winced at his bluntness. Despite his earlier sharing of his feelings, Mr. Sensitivity he wasn't.

"Who was it?" Booth asked, after sharing a puzzled look with Brennan, having no idea who would have done something like that.

"No idea," Jared returned. "We just assumed that it was one of your exes."

"Doubtful," murmured Booth, "I haven't been involved with anyone in a long time, Jared." Turning to Padme, he asked, "What did she look like?"

"Tall, slender, dark, wavy hair, brown eyes, bad attitude," Padme supplied concisely. Booth and Brennan shared a baffled look, that description didn't fit any of his exes. "And she kept calling me sweetie," Padme added as an afterthought.

Booth and Brennan blinked at each other, that little clue telling them exactly who the psycho stalker was. "Angela," they breathed together.

"Whew," Jared whistled, just managing to keep his mouth shut but the half admiring, half condemning gaze on his face told Booth exactly what he was thinking.

"I didn't sleep with Angela, Jared," Booth snapped, holding Jared's eyes. He didn't like the implication and wanted his brother to understand how wrong he was.

"Okay, okay, I believe you," Jared held his hands up in supplication. "But why would she go all Fatal Attraction on Padme if she wasn't jealous?" Jared asked, genuinely curious.

"It's complicated," Booth said, surprised to find himself more exasperated than angry at Angela's antics. Yes, he was upset that Padme had been the recipient of her snit fit but he couldn't help but feel that it wouldn't have happened if he and Brennan had just come clean with the squints and that went a long way in quelling his anger.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan whispered, leaning toward Booth and placing her hand on his shoulder. Booth turned his head to smile at her and just like that, they might as well have been alone in the room. Jared rolled his eyes but Padme lightly slapped his arm and gave him an admonishing look. She thought it was adorable.

"It's a movie," he leaned closer to whisper back, his finger reaching up to stroke down her neck in the process. "I'll explain later," he said, getting even closer to nuzzle her cheek with his nose.

"Ahem," Jared loudly cleared his throat. "Ouch," he squealed an instant later when Padme's foot bounced off of his shin.

"Padme, I don't know what to say except that I'm really sorry that you got pulled into this mess," Booth offered sincerely, pulling away from Brennan with a regretful sigh.

"Me, too," said Brennan softly, utterly shocked at Angela's actions. She had known that Angela was determined to get her and Booth together but, even for Angela, actively attacking Booth's "girlfriend" was carrying things too far. She also felt a niggling of guilt that it wouldn't have happened if they hadn't all been playing games with each other. "What, exactly, did she do?" she questioned, not sure she really wanted to know.

Brennan listened in wide eyed astonishment as Padme recounted her meeting with the psycho stalker from Hell as she so fondly called it almost word for word.

Booth winced at the juicier parts. "I'm going to kill her," he growled, his exasperation being speedily replaced by anger.

"Why would she do something like that?" asked Brennan, even more confused now that she had heard the mean, hurtful things Angela had said. That didn't sound like her best friend at all.

"I have no idea how Angela's mind works," Booth responded. "I doubt that anyone does but she, no doubt, did it to break me and my pretend girlfriend up so she could get us together," he hypothesized to Brennan, forgetting they had an audience.

"I concur," she nodded after a moment's consideration. "But it was ill conceived of her to think we wouldn't eventually discover her subterfuge." Padme and Jared's fascinated gazes went from Booth to Brennan trying to follow the conversation.

"True," conceded Booth, "but this is Angela we're talking about here. I doubt that she considered long term implications before she acted." Brennan mulled that over and nodded her agreement.

"Oh, God, she's turned him into one of them," Jared moaned, dropping his head into his cupped hands.

"One of whom, Jared?" Brennan asked in a voice dripping with icy disdain. She had heard Booth whine about her and the other squints turning Parker into one of them in just that tone of horrified outrage enough to know exactly what Jared meant and she was offended. As she had so often told Booth in the past, there was absolutely nothing wrong with being a scientist. It was an honorable, rewarding profession and she was proud to be a part of that world. Plus, she had gotten pretty good at messing with people, if she did say so herself, and Jared needed an attitude adjustment.

"Umm, what?" Jared's head snapped up at Brennan's tone and he eyed her warily, swallowing hard. Padme's eyes widened, too. Brennan looked pissed and she didn't imagine that would be pretty for her fiancé.

"Don't scare the boy, Bones," Booth chided, using the phrase she often used on him regarding Sweets.

"Fine." She shot him a disgruntled _you never let me have any fun_ look. He winked at her and his eyes warmed, promising to let her have all the fun she could handle later and she was appeased. In fact, she couldn't tear her eyes away from the erotic promises his were making.

"Ahem," Jared cleared his throat again, shooting Padme a smug look that he'd had the foresight to turn sideways in his chair so she couldn't kick him again. She reached out and pinched his arm just so he didn't get too cocky. "Yeah, hi, remember us?" Jared grinned at Booth and Brennan as they finally tore their attention away from each other and looked at him.

"Smartass," Booth grumbled into his coffee but he was smiling.

"I concur," Brennan smiled into her own coffee and Padme burst out laughing. She was growing more and more certain that she was going to enjoy having these two as in-laws immensely.

"Funny," Jared mock scowled at them all but his eyes were twinkling and he was thrilled to see his big brother acting like a teenager in love. He was even more thrilled to see Brennan acting the same way. Those two were solid. "Care to explain why Angela thinks you have a girlfriend other than Temperence?" he asked, his casual tone of voice belying his burning curiosity.

"Not really," replied Booth instantly, squirming a little at how juvenile it would sound if he tried to explain the whole thing to Jared who would, undoubtedly, laugh his ass off.

"That's cool," Jared conceded. It wasn't but you couldn't push Seeley into telling you something. He did everything in his own good time. "So, what did you want to talk to me about that couldn't wait until dinner?" he asked, checking his watch and seeing it was almost 3:30.

"Jared, I'm really sorry, but Bones and I have a case out of town. We won't be able to make dinner. In fact, we have to get going soon so we can pack and get back to the Jeffersonian before 5." Booth met Jared's eyes levelly, hoping that his little brother could see that he was genuinely regretful. He had been looking forward to getting caught up with the stable man that was replacing the lost, selfish, self destructive little boy Jared had been for so long. He had also been looking forward to getting to know Padme better, knowing that her presence in Jared's life was responsible for at least some of the positive changes he could see.

"Bummer." Jared was surprised at how disappointed he was to hear that he wouldn't really get to spend any time with his brother while they were in town. "We could stay through the weekend if you'll be back by then," he offered and Padme nodded her agreement, fully supporting Jared's attempt to connect with Booth.

"We would really love that, Jared, but we'll be out of town at least several days. There's no way we'll be done by the weekend," he looked at Brennan for verification.

"I have no way of knowing for sure, of course, but considering the facts I was given, I'm estimating we'll need a minimum of 4 to 6 days to excavate the remains without risking the destruction of any evidence," she confirmed with a nod, not bothering to go into how a multitude of factors could influence that estimate.

Padme patted Jared's arm at his disappointed expression, offering him silent comfort and support. She knew that he was frustrated but she also knew that he and Seeley would have time to work on their relationship later and she could see that they were both trying. It might take a while for them to get where they both wanted them to be but they would eventually get there.

Jared took comfort from Padme's presence and knew that his brother didn't need a guilt trip from him for simply being one of the things Jared most admired about him, a man who took his responsibilities to others seriously. Once upon a time, he wouldn't have hesitated to express his discontentment and lay it on thick but he wasn't that person anymore. "I'm disappointed but I understand," Jared conceded quietly and Booth could see the truth of that statement on his face. His little brother was finally growing up.

"I'm disappointed, too, Jared," Booth assured him truthfully, "but this is what we do." He gestured between him and Brennan. "I can't just blow that off, not even for you." The old Jared would have been insulted, taking offense at the implication he would expect Seeley to choose him over his job. Hell, the old Jared would have expected him to do just that.

"It's fine, Seeley," Jared grinned, a little uncomfortable with how deep this conversation was getting. "In fact, you guys better get going if you don't want to be late."

"You're right," Booth agreed, glancing at his watch and hastily finishing his coffee. "You're welcome to use my place and stay as long as you like but we really do need to get going." He stood and pulled out Brennan's chair. Brennan smiled up at him then turned to Padme.

"Booth and I would like for you to have dinner on us even though we can't be there. I've made arrangements at CityZen and you have reservations at 7:30 so please go and enjoy yourselves," she told Padme, unaware of the stunned look on Jared's face or the pride on Booth's.

"Thank you, Dr. Brennan," smiled Padme graciously, "we would be delighted to accept your generous offer." Brennan nodded and stood, turning to Booth.

"What's wrong?" she asked at the look on his face.

"Nothing's wrong, Baby," he said softly, brushing the hair back from her face. "You just continue to surprise me every single day." Without taking his eyes from Brennan's face, he waved at Jared and Padme and turned his partner toward the door, his arm sliding around her shoulders. "It was really sweet of you to make them reservations at one of the most romantic, most expensive places in the city."

"I thought it might make up for the fact that they wouldn't get to spend any time with you while they're in town," Brennan returned practically, not even realizing that six months ago she wouldn't have worried about making anything up to Jared and his fiancé.

"Thank you for going to so much trouble." Booth smiled down at Brennan as they pushed through the bar door.

"It wasn't," she began then caught herself, "you're welcome," she smiled back at him. She had been working on how to simply accept a compliment or thanks without a discussion or protest, something that had been a real issue for her in the past.

He grinned and squeezed her shoulders. "You know," he mused, opening the door of the SUV for her to get in, "I'm really sad about that too." Brennan slid into her seat and looked up into big, brown, puppy dog eyes sparkling with mischief and darkening with the heat of desire as they roamed over her.

Brennan blinked up at him innocently and bit back a smile. "Are you suggesting that I should attempt to make you feel better, as well?" she queried flirtatiously.

"Mmm hmm," he murmured, leaning closer, his finger softly tracing over her collarbone.

"So you want me to make you a reservation at an expensive restaurant?" she teased.

"Not exactly," he demurred, his finger sliding toward her cleavage. "I had something besides food in mind."

"Like what?" She batted her lashes at him and he couldn't resist leaning down and rubbing his nose against hers but he knew better than to kiss her right here on the street in broad daylight. They didn't have time to get arrested for public indecency and that might be a concern if he kissed her like he wanted to.

"Oh, I have a few ideas," he whispered into her ear then nipped the lobe, his hands clenching with the need to touch her as she moaned and leaned toward him. "I'll tell you all about them when we get to your place," he promised with a quick kiss to her neck, making himself pull away and shut the door before he embarrassed them both. Hurrying around the SUV, he hoped she could pack fast because he was going to need every second of the time before they left to demonstrate a couple of those ideas.


	30. Chapter 30

**Hey, guys, Musie was feeling especially playful today so I hope you like what we came up with. Let me know either way. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**A/N: I profusely apologize for being so behind answering my reviews. It is impossible to get caught up until my wrist gets better so please accept my blanket thanks for taking the time to let me know you're enjoying my work. You guys ROCK!**

After the fastest round of speed packing ever, Booth and Brennan made it back to the lab with ten minutes to spare, both still a little out of breath from more than the rush to get back to the lab. If Booth had had his way, they would have spent the night in DC and set out on the six hour drive to the crime scene in the morning because it didn't make any sense to him to arrive in the middle of the night. But, no, his superiors were in a tizzy because of the press this case was bound to get and they wanted Brennan and her team on site ASAP to take control of evidence collection. So, instead of the two of them snuggling in bed like he would much prefer to be doing at the moment, they walked into a lab that was eerily quiet and deserted compared to the bustling commotion that had been going on earlier.

"Where is everyone?" Brennan asked, glancing at Booth in confusion.

"I don't know," Booth replied, looking around, just as confused.

"Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth," called Clark to get their attention from across the room. Booth and Brennan turned to watch the young man swagger toward them, clearly reveling in his role of being in charge while everyone else was out in the field. It took only a single raised brow from Brennan to deflate that swagger and throw him back into his subservient role. "Umm, yeah, Dr. Saroyan wanted me to let you know that she got everything loaded and since the mobile lab won't make as good time as you will, she departed about 15 minutes ago." Clark spoke quickly, squirming a little under Brennan's dispassionate gaze.

"Okay, Clark, thanks for letting us know," Booth replied, taking Brennan's arm and turning to go. To his surprise, she held firm, her gaze never leaving the now obviously nervous Clark. "Bones, we should get going," he urged.

"In a minute, Booth," she patted his hand caressingly and Clark would have raised a brow at that if he hadn't been afraid to break eye contact with Brennan. She looked like she had something to say and he wasn't entirely sure it was something he was going to want to hear. "Clark, Cam and I will be available by cell phone for any questions during our absence." Where they were going, cell coverage was spotty at best but Brennan had demanded and received a satellite phone in addition to their own equipment so keeping in touch with the lab wouldn't be a problem. "All you have to do is keep the grad students busy in Limbo. The FBI already knows we won't be available to consult on any new cases and I have left a detailed list of the things I would like you to accomplish during my absence on my desk."

Clark frowned, not sure if she was telling him that she thought he could do the job or if she was stating the opposite. Cam had already given him a pep talk before her departure but she had been much easier to read. She had clearly stated that she would have his hide if he messed up while he was in charge so he was sort of waiting for Dr. Brennan to make her own threats. Cam was a little scary but he didn't think Dr. Brennan ever said anything she didn't mean and he was more than a little concerned about what she might do to him if he screwed up.

"I have full confidence in your ability to adequately supervise the lab during our absence," she continued stiffly and Clark's eyes widened.

"Umm, thank you, Dr. Brennan," Clark responded, his chest puffing out at the implied praise in his abilities.

Booth ducked his head and stifled a grin. Brennan was nervous about leaving her house of reason in the hands of one of her students even though she logically knew he was capable of doing the job and she was trying to build his confidence in himself. _Who would have ever thought Dr. Temperence Brennan would have felt the need to do something like that or taken the time to accomplish it?_ She had changed so much in the last six months. Booth had already loved everything about her and would never have asked her to change anything about herself but he had to admit that he thought it was adorable for her to make the effort to reassure Clark. Seeing how uncomfortable she was beginning to look, he decided that she was finished and that they should be on their way.

"Time for us to go, Bones," he urged, stepping behind her and putting both hands on her shoulders, turning her toward the door. "Good luck, Clark. Try not to burn the place down while we're gone," he joked over his shoulder.

"I'll give it my best shot," Clark joked back.

"What?" gasped Brennan, instantly trying to pull away and turn around and Booth winced, knowing she hadn't gotten his joke. "Why would you say something like that, Booth?" she demanded, turning her head toward him as he continued to propel her toward the door. "Do you consider arson a possibility?" she finally managed to twist out of Booth's grasp and turned to eye Clark suspiciously as if Booth might know something about the young man that she didn't.

Clark threw Booth a 'thanks a lot' look and tried to think of something to say but nothing came to mind. Thanks to Booth's sense of humor and Brennan's lack of the same, he had a feeling that he was about to be removed from his position of authority. Luckily for him, Booth knew exactly how to handle his partner and stepped into the breach.

"I was kidding, Bones. It was a joke," he assured her, stepping into her line of sight so she would stop glaring at Clark and look at him. "You know, haha funny. That kind of joke," he cajoled with a smile, stepping closer and tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"You think Clark burning down my lab would be _funny_?" she demanded, appalled at the very idea.

"Of course not," he assured her, knowing he needed to tread lightly here or, as protective as she was of the lab, he would never get her out of here. "It was a very, very bad joke and I'm sorry I made it. It was just a way of wishing Clark luck, kind of like telling an actor to break a leg before they go on stage," he explained patiently.

"Why on earth would you tell someone to break a leg? That doesn't sound like good luck to me," she countered and Booth ignored Clark's snicker, concentrating on Brennan.

"It doesn't make any sense to me, either," he admitted. "It's just something people say to each other."

"So you don't actually think there is a significant probability of Clark setting my lab on fire either purposely or unintentionally?" She deliberately phrased the question that way to cover all the bases.

"Of course not," Booth soothed, wanting to lean down and kiss her so badly that he could taste it. Instead, he let his fingers trail over her cheek. Her anxious eyes searched his face and she finally nodded.

"Okay, I know that we have to go," she mused almost to herself, "and someone has to be in charge so I'm going to trust you," she finished without adding and you'd better be right but it hung heavily in the air. Without warning, she turned to Clark with a cool, laser like gaze. "Clark, I'm going to have to insist that you refrain from working with flammable or combustible compounds while we're gone," she said firmly.

"What? But Dr. Brennan, you know I need access to combustible chemicals to adequately perform my job," Clark objected, shooting Booth a _thank you for messing this up for me_ glare. Booth didn't notice, his attention still focused on his rather agitated partner.

"Bones, you have to let the boy do his job," he chided, his hands smoothing up and down her arms.

"I'm not trying to stop him from doing his job, Booth," she argued. "You're the one who suggested that he couldn't be trusted not to burn the lab down," she reminded him tartly. "In fact, perhaps it would be best if no one had access to flammable materials until we get back," she added brightly. Brennan knew she was being absurd but the horrors of what could happen without her or Cam there to supervise had been running through her head for hours and she didn't want to take any chances. Booth and Clark both rolled their eyes and Booth knew there was no winning this argument. The best he could do now was to get her out of here before she really hogtied Clark with rules.

"Okay then. And on that note, we're out of here," he told Clark with a slightly sheepish shrug. Firmly gripping her arm, Booth pulled Brennan toward the door, ignoring her sputtered protest that she wasn't finished giving Clark instructions. Clark looked highly relieved to see them go and Booth couldn't really blame him. He would have to work on Brennan and get her to rescind her rules so Clark could do his job but he wasn't stupid enough to countermand those orders, knowing she wouldn't respond well to his stepping on her toes on her turf.

Fuming, Clark turned back into the lab, wondering what the hell he was supposed to do with his hands tied behind his back. No way was he stupid enough to go against her direct orders or ask Cam to countermand them. He just didn't have the balls to face the fallout from such a move, namely a seriously pissed off Dr. Brennan. He could only hope that she came to recognize the ridiculousness of her restrictions and reversed them herself.

"You know I was just joking about Clark burning your lab down, baby," Booth told Brennan, sliding an arm around her shoulders and squeezing when she fell into step with him.

"I know," she sighed, "it's just that…," her voice trailed off, not really knowing how to explain her instinctive need to protect the lab but more than that, she felt the need to protect her students and colleagues, even from themselves if necessary.

"You're having separation anxiety," Booth said decisively and Brennan turned her head to look at him with a lifted brow.

"I don't think so, Booth," she scoffed, "and since when did you start talking like Sweets?" Booth laughed at her surly tone, knowing it was simply because she knew he was right.

"Look at it like this, Bones. When you're away, Cam is always around to manage everyone but this time both of you are gone and you feel like you're leaving your baby alone with the babysitter for the first time." She stubbornly shook her head but he could tell she was listening. "You just have to remember that Clark is a very good babysitter, one whom you have trained yourself, one who cares about your baby almost as much as you do." Brennan mulled that over for several seconds. Not that she believed in psychology but she could admit that she had trained Clark well and he was unlikely to blow up the lab unless it was on purpose and she was fairly certain that Booth would have spotted anomalies in his personality indicating those types of tendencies.

"So, I should just take a chill pill?" she grinned up at him and Booth gave a startled laugh at her use of the term.

"Yeah, I think that would be a good idea," he encouraged, giving her shoulders another squeeze before dropping his arm to hold the door to the parking garage open for her.

"What are we going to do about Angela?" Brennan asked in one of her lightening quick change of subjects that still sometimes threw him off. Not this time though. He knew that she was asking if they were going to confront Angela about her attack on Padme and it was a good question. He just didn't have an answer. Shockingly, they hadn't taken the time to discuss it when they had reached her apartment, instead, choosing to spend their time more productively considering the lack of privacy they would have on site. Which is to say, they had spent an erotic hour and a half in bed and Angela's name hadn't come up at all. So, it was good that they would have such a long drive to figure some things out before they were faced with the entire squint squad.

"I don't know, baby," he admitted. "But we have plenty of time to figure it out on the way," he assured her.

"Maybe not," Brennan whispered, her step slowing as she pointed toward the SUV.

"Damn," he muttered, dragging his gaze away from her face to look where she was pointing. "What are you three doing here?" He asked as they drew abreast of the trio negligently leaning against the SUV with their luggage at their feet.

"Hi, Booth. It's great to see you, too. And I'm good, thank you so much for asking," laughed Angela.

"Very funny, Angela," Booth grouched, "now why are you here?"

"We're riding with you," Hodgins broke in cheerfully. Booth pinned him with an _Oh, really?_ gaze and Hodgins swallowed hard.

"There were a limited number of seats in the mobile lab so Cam thought it best if the three of us rode with you and Dr. Brennan," jumped in Sweets. He had his own little theory that Cam wanted them all in the same vehicle for several hours to air all the dirty laundry before they got to the crime scene but he couldn't be sure.

"That's true, Booth. The mobile lab does have limited seating and it would be extremely uncomfortable not to mention dangerous to sit on the floor or stand for six hours," Brennan chimed in.

"You could always get another FBI vehicle and drive the three of you," Booth told Sweets calmly, unable to resist messing with him a little before giving in.

"Sorry, I can't," Sweets grinned, "I have night blindness." Brennan gave Booth a chastising look and he immediately caved, to everyone else's amusement.

"Fine," he snapped, unlocking the SUV doors then pitching the keys to Hodgins so they could load their luggage. Nodding toward the SUV, he indicated he wanted Brennan to get in quickly which she did.

"What?"

"I don't think we should say anything to Angela until we have a chance to talk about it," he said quickly, his eyes on the rearview mirror watching the trio rather ineptly toss their luggage into the back of the vehicle.

"Okay," Brennan agreed instantly. She didn't have any idea what to say to her best friend except that her behavior was unacceptable but she had a feeling Angela already knew that so she was willing to follow Booth's lead on this one. "But what if she says something on the way?" Booth rolled his eyes and Brennan got the distinct impression he didn't expect that to happen.

"We're ready," Angela declared cheerfully as she opened the back door and slid to the middle of the seat. Hodgins and Sweets followed her in, closing their respective doors behind them. All three faced forward and grinned at Booth and Brennan as if they were heading out on a great adventure.

"This is going to be fun," Angela added, "all of us riding together, not the case because the case is awful," she clarified at Booth and Brennan's disbelieving looks. Booth and Brennan glanced at the three people in the back seat then at each other, sharing a single thought. _Yeah, this was going to be loads of fun. Just not for them. _

Three hours later, Booth most definitely was NOT having fun. In fact, if he heard one more round of 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, he was going to pull out his gun and start firing into the back seat where their three unwanted passengers were having a fine, old time. They were acting like a bunch of hyperactive, unruly, five year olds, squirming and giggling and singing, getting quiet for mere moments when Booth yelled at them then starting right back up. They had started out with I Spy and continued until Brennan had desperately pointed out that it was too dark to really see anything which had, unfortunately, brought on the sing along and Booth didn't know how much longer he could take it. He had already threatened to shoot them at least three times and it didn't even slow them down. Just as the three started to belt out the chorus which, incidentally, was down to 41 bottles of beer, Booth glanced over at Brennan and his face softened as he noted she was rubbing her forehead indicating she had a headache. He wasn't really surprised. It was so noisy in the car that he couldn't even hear himself think, nothing like their normal travel repertoire of quiet conversation. Time for a break.

"Is anyone hungry?" he asked loudly, glancing in the rearview mirror and noting that he had everyone's attention.

"I'm starving," Angela halted bellowing out the song to inform him. _Thank God._

"Me, too," agreed Hodgins.

"I could eat," concurred Sweets.

"Bones?" Booth asked softly, reaching over to rub the nape of her neck with his free hand.

"I'm not all that hungry but I _really _need to stop for a few minutes," she admitted, smiling at him tiredly, relishing the moment of silence in the car and praying it didn't immediately dissipate.

"Yeah, I know what you mean," he assured her. Not bothering to ask where everyone wanted to eat, he took the next exit and quickly pulled into the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel. "Out," he ordered the hooligans in the back seat, anticipating some backtalk. He was surprised when they happily climbed out and began to stretch.

"How bad would it be if we just pulled away and left them here?" Brennan asked quietly, her head resting against the back of her seat, her eyes closing tiredly.

"Pretty bad but I like the way you think," Booth assured her with a grin. Sometimes he was a little startled at her sense of humor but this time he thought it was more her sense of self preservation kicking in because he would like nothing better than to leave the three loud people standing in the parking lot staring at their retreating taillights.

"I guess we have to get out and go in now?" she sighed.

"I'm afraid so," Booth laughed, "but look at it like this, maybe the kiddies will all take a nap once they're full." Booth knew they hadn't really discussed how they were going to handle breaking their relationship to the squints under the current circumstances but he couldn't resist tipping her chin up and dropping a light kiss on her lips, not giving a damn how the terrible trio reacted.

"Or we could just stay out here and make out," Brennan smiled against his lips, her hands lifting to his shoulders.

"Hmm, I really like that idea," he agreed, nuzzling her nose with his just as his stomach objected to the possibility of not getting fed with a loud growl.

Brennan reached up and gave him a kiss that made his toes curl then laughingly pushed him away, her good mood restored by the Booth fix. "Let's go feed you," she rolled her eyes at the predictability of him being hungry.

"Hey, what can I say? I'm a growing boy," he protested with a frequent refrain and knew just how tired she was when she didn't bother to object to his statement. "Come on," he urged, reaching for his door handle, "let's get something to eat then we can be on our way and dump them on Cam," he nodded toward the trio who had made their way to the restaurant entrance and were impatiently waiting on them.

"Good idea," Brennan acknowledged, getting out of the vehicle and stretching. Booth slung an arm around her shoulders and they had almost reached their party when Booth's phone rang.

"Booth," he barked into the phone, moving himself and Brennan to the side so they weren't blocking the restaurant entrance. Hodgins, Angela and Sweets followed, acting like well behaved adults now and keeping their silence.

"Damn. How long will it take to do that?" Brennan's brow lifted at the irritation in Booth's voice.

"I don't see that we have a choice."

"Fine," he sighed resignedly.

"No, I'll take care of notifying Cam. Give me the number of the place again. No, I think I can remember the name," he barked, settling the cell phone between his shoulder and ear and reaching into his pocket for his notebook and pen.

"Yeah, yeah, I've got it. Call me as soon as you get the road open." Booth snapped his cell phone shut and rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. This thing had been a logistical nightmare from the word go and it had just gotten worse.

"What's wrong?" Brennan asked and Booth looked up to find everyone staring at him.

"It appears that they've had heavy rains in the mountains over the past week and there's been a mudslide blocking the only road leading to the crime scene."

"Is it raining now?" Brennan asked anxiously.

"No," Booth reassured her, knowing that her concern was the preservation of the scene, "and they assure me that they have covered the scene so it won't get contaminated even if it does rain."

"Covered it how?" broke in Hodgins, knowing that heavy rain could quickly wash away trace evidence.

"I don't know, Hodgins," Booth snapped then took a deep breath. They certainly had the right to know what was going on. "I need to call Cam, then I'll explain everything," he said more calmly.

"Come on, guys," Angela prodded taking Sweets and Hodgins by the arm, "let's go in and get a table."

"Thanks, Ange," murmured Brennan as Angela led the boys away, returning the sunny smile Angela shot her way. Brennan just then realized how long it had been since she had seen her best friend smile in such a genuine manner. _If she didn't have to kill her for getting on her nerves before they got to the crime scene, she really should try to get Angela to talk to her about whatever was bothering her, _she pondered as Booth made the call to Cam.

"No, Cam, I'm not joking. The name of the place really is the No Tell Motel." Brennan pulled herself back to the matter at hand, realizing that she had missed out on part of the conversation. Booth rolled his eyes as Brennan's brow lifted. She could clearly hear Cam's laughter but she failed to understand what Cam was finding so amusing about the name of the motel.

"I'll explain later," Booth promised softly and Brennan nodded.

"No, Cam, I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to Bones. I have the address and phone number for the motel in case you have any problems finding it." He rattled off those pieces of information then paused to listen.

"I don't really see that we need to be in any hurry so you guys can stop and get something to eat. That's what we're doing. Oh and by the way, thanks so much for sticking us with the three stooges. We really appreciate it." Even Brennan recognized the sarcasm in that one and she could hear Cam laughing as Booth hung up on her.

"Ready?" asked Brennan, motioning toward the entrance, knowing it would be simpler for Booth to just explain everything to everyone at once.

"Yeah," Booth reached out and held the door for her to precede him. Entering the restaurant, they looked around and saw Angela, Hodgins and Sweets seated at the very back of the room, well away from any other diners. "What's the deal?" Booth indicated the seating as he pulled out Brennan's chair for her.

"It was Hodgins' idea," Sweets said a little condescendingly, "he didn't want us to be overheard."

"Good idea, Hodgins," Brennan praised and Hodgins beamed at the unexpected support.

"So what's going on?" questioned Angela, eagerly leaning forward but she was interrupted by the waitress.

"Could you give us a few minutes, Amanda?" Hodgins asked after getting a good look at the name tag clipped to a well displayed, ample bosom, shooting the young woman a charming, flirtatious smile.

"Sure," Amanda giggled, blushing. Angela rolled her eyes but was careful not to let the younger woman see her. After all, she didn't want to hurt her feelings or get her food spit in if she could help it. "Just let me know when you all are ready to order," Amanda fluttered her lashes at Hodgins then sauntered away, hips swinging. Angela noted that Hodgins and Sweets were enjoying the view but Booth never even glanced her way. _Interesting._

Booth picked up the coffee someone had thoughtfully ordered for him and took a sip, noting that Brennan did the same. Glancing up, he saw that everyone was waiting on him to begin. "Like I said in our briefing, the place we're going is on Federal land but I didn't really get into the logistics because I thought they had all been worked out. It seems I was wrong." He paused to take another sip of coffee and Angela thought he was finished.

"I don't understand," she prodded.

"It's out in the middle of nowhere. The closest town is about a hundred miles away and the mudslide is blocking the only road in about sixty miles out so there's no way we can get in tonight. And even if we could get there, it would be kind of pointless until daylight."

"Why would it be pointless?" asked Hodgins. In his opinion, the sooner they got to the crime scene, the better off everyone would be with the exception of the bad guys.

"The Forestry Service is in the process of carving us out a road to get to the crime scene but, as it stands now, it's a twelve mile hike one way from the nearest access road to the burial site."

"What?" gasped Angela, "surely you don't expect us to hike twelve miles in the dark and rain?"

"No, Angela, that's why they're working around the clock to make us a big enough trail to get the mobile lab in," Booth explained patiently.

"Why not just chopper us in?" Hodgins asked, his eagerness to get on site and assess the situation for himself coming through.

"It's not that easy, Hodgins," Brennan took this one because she had won the debate with Hacker who had suggested the same thing. "We could do that but with everyone and everything being flown back and forth like that, the probability of evidence being compromised or mistakes being made increase exponentially. We need the mobile lab close enough that we can set it up and have access to all of our equipment while we excavate the remains." Hodgins nodded, firmly agreeing with Brennan's reasoning.

"How are they protecting the scene until we get there?" he asked.

"They've erected a protective dome over the site and the surrounding area. It will, of course, protect only the surface but it won't prevent any evidence destruction if the water table actually rises." Brennan explained, giving him all the details she actually had.

"Of course," agreed Hodgins. "We need to get in there before any more evidence gets destroyed," he finished passionately, looking at Booth as if he was personally responsible for their inability to do so.

"Take it easy, bug man," Booth advised calmly, "we all want to get in there and find out what the hell happened to those kids but we can't do it tonight so I suggest you relax and decide what you want to eat." Being a practical man, Hodgins picked up his menu.

"So are we going to be driving back and forth to the nearest town or are we actually going to be camping out?" Angela asked, laying down her menu after making her selection. She hated to harp on the camping thing but she really wanted to know how bad it was going to be so she could prepare herself.

"Neither," grinned Sweets, motioning to Booth and Brennan to peruse their menus and let him take this question. "The camp the kids disappeared from is about twenty miles from where the grave was discovered so we're going to be making it our base camp."

"It's still open?" Angela asked in surprise. She sure wouldn't send her kids some place that had managed to lose children belonging to other people.

"It went broke as a summer camp a couple of years ago and the owners turned it into a corporate retreat specializing in team building," Sweets paused when he noted the delicate derision for the type of retreat it was on Angela's face. In his opinion, it wouldn't hurt for all of them to partake of some team building exercises while they were here, especially considering how divided the team had been as of late, but he wasn't in charge so he held his peace. He would just have to wait for an opportunity to present itself and use his skills as a psychologist to help everyone share their hurts and work things out so they could get back to being the squint squad undivided as opposed to what they had become.

Angela almost sagged in relief. She knew it was petty and shallow of her to be so concerned about camping out but she couldn't help it. The one and only time she had ever been camping as a child had been a horrible, painful, humiliating experience and she never wanted to repeat it. She had been nine years old and so excited that her famous father was going to be spending time alone with her that she hadn't cared what they were going to do. She had immediately jumped at the chance to go camping with him and it had been the week from hell.

Well, four days actually and day one had been pretty great. They had gone to a friend of her father's place in Tennessee and hiked into the woods, pitching camp beside a small waterfall. Angela had looked around in fascination at seeing nature so up close and personal, her artistic eye seeing the untamed beauty surrounding them and immediately wanting to transfer what she was seeing to canvas. She had happily followed her father around like a shadow, just knowing that this week was going to be the one that made him want to be with her more than he did now. She had gone to sleep that night and dreamt that things would be like this from now on with her father, that he would be there any time she wanted him to and most especially when she needed him to.

Day two had dawned clear and beautiful and they had hiked for miles, laughing and talking until she finally had no choice but to excuse herself and answer the call of nature. She hadn't spent much time outdoors and it was embarrassing and a little disgusting to her to relieve herself outside so she had waded into the bushes and quickly finished her business. She hadn't realized until several hours later when her father had pointed out Poison Ivy and told her to never, ever touch it that she had made a huge mistake in her choice of bathroom location. Her artistic recall told her it had been in the middle of a patch of Poison Ivy and the itching in her groin told her that was very, very bad.

Despite the overwhelming need to claw at the itch, she had managed to restrain herself and make it back to camp with a little dignity intact, questioning her father on the appropriate treatment for Poison Ivy which he had gladly shared. Unfortunately, he hadn't shared that the oil from the plant needed to be removed from the skin to stop the allergic reaction and the hydrocortisone cream she had frantically dug out of the first aid kit and slathered on hadn't helped a whole hell of a lot. All afternoon and evening, he kept asking her what was wrong but she simply couldn't discuss it with him. She loved her father but the plain truth was that she didn't know him well enough to discuss something so personal with him so she had denied that anything was wrong and smiled through the pain. She had bathed under the waterfall that night and found immeasurable relief from the burning itch. She had gone to sleep that night telling herself that it was worth anything to spend this alone time with her dad and that tomorrow would be better.

It wasn't. Aside from the fact that her private parts were so painful she could barely walk, her father took her fishing and she hated everything about it. Determined to give it a fair try, she allowed her father to bait her hook, her eyes widening in horror as she watched the way it was done and heard the wormy little, high pitched squeals of agony as it tried to writhe away from torture and sure death. To his credit, her dad hadn't laughed at her when she had asked him if he had heard it but she hadn't believed him when he said it didn't hurt the worms. She had been pretty damned sure that anything being skewered like that was in pain, whether you could actually hear it's screams or not. She had felt just as bad for the fish he had reeled in one after another until she had picked up on how to tell when he was about to catch another one. She began to surreptitiously toss rocks into the water when his line started to twitch and gave him the big, innocent eyes when he looked her way. It didn't take him all that long to figure out she wasn't really into fishing then they went, yippee, hiking again. By the time, she crawled into her sleeping bag that night, she wanted to curl up and cry in pain and misery. Instead, she told herself to suck it up, at least it couldn't get any worse than this.

It did. Day four had been one of the worst days of her life and it had been entirely her fault. Her father had wanted to go fishing again and she had encouraged him to do so but refused to watch him torture worms again, shuddering as she remembered their cries for help. She had promised him that she would stay in camp where he could see her from his fishing spot and sketch and he had finally given in, admonishing her not to wander off. Gathering her art supplies, she had slowly wandered around camp, sketching several different things. Hearing a noise behind her, she had spun around to find herself almost face to face with a deer fawn and it was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen in her life. They had both frozen, staring at each other, then the fawn had turned and strolled into the woods as calmly as you please. Angela had no idea that meant the fawn had had previous contact with humans or it would have skittered away at the first hint of her presence. The only thing that she knew was that she desperately wanted to draw Bambi. Without a second thought, she followed it into the woods.

By the time she realized she had wandered away from camp she was well and truly lost, not recognizing her surroundings at all and having no idea how to get back. She had kept her cool until the sky began to grow dark with rainclouds and the first drops of rain began to fall, then she began to yell for her father at the top of her lungs, not surprised he couldn't hear her over the thunder and lightning of the sudden summer storm. She was cold and wet and lost and scared but she had been certain that camping hell couldn't possibly get worse than this when she had stumbled upon a small, barely standing wooden shed, thankful to have found shelter from the storm and sure she was safe for the moment. She should have known better.

Stumbling into the shed, she had collapsed against its buckled wall, pulling her knees to her chest and burying her face in her arms. She didn't know how long she sat there sobbing for her father until her eyes began to sting and water and the most awful smell invaded her nostrils. No, it didn't just invade her nostrils, the acrid, pungent scent settled around her in a misty cloud, coating her hair and clothes and permeating her skin until she could actually taste it in her throat, choking and gagging on the noxious odor. Afraid to look, she had finally gathered the courage to lift her head enough for her eyes to dart around the dark interior of the tiny shack and felt hysterical laughter bubbling inside her. She might not be Ranger Rick but she recognized the two adult and one baby skunk standing in front of her and she knew what had just happened. And it was suddenly the funniest thing ever. Laughing so hard tears were running down her face and she collapsed on the floor in a heap because she couldn't remain sitting, she didn't even see the departure of the skunk family, obviously anxious to get away from the insane human child.

Her father had found her only minutes later, lying in a crumpled, miserable heap. He had picked her up in his big, strong arms and carried her back to camp, never once chastising her for wandering away from camp. He had apologized profusely for not watching her better, not even flinching at the odor emanating from her, making one phone call and viola, within thirty minutes, they were being picked up by a couple of men on ATV's who broke camp while her father took her back to his friend's house to get her cleaned up.

Within three hours, she was gratefully on her way home and she considered herself lucky that her dad had his own plane because, despite the delightful tomato juice bath, she was relatively certain she wouldn't have been allowed on a commercial flight. To put it politely, she reeked, stank to high heaven, smelled so awful that her father's long time pilot who was generally teasingly affectionate with her had stopped in his tracks and backed away with a peculiar look on his face, covering his nose and mouth with his hand. By nightfall, she was wrapped in the warm, comforting arms of her mother, sure that her father would never want to spend time alone with her again, certain that he would never come back. But he had, maybe not as often as she would have liked but he had come back time after time until she had understood that he always would. And, thankfully, he had never mentioned camping again.

"Angela, are you ready to order?" Angela was pulled back to the present by Brennan, shaking her arm.

"Yeah, sure," she blinked the memories away, unable to repress a shudder at even the thought of being forced to go camping ever again. Giving the waitress her order, she handed over her menu and tuned in to the depressing conversation about the case still flowing around her.

An hour later, everyone had finished eating and the girls excused themselves to the restroom. Booth's eyes followed Brennan until she was out of sight then he turned back to Hodgins and Sweets, having been waiting for just such an opportunity. "Okay, guys, listen up," he said sharply, delighted when both men sat at attention. "When we get back in the SUV, you two are going to be quiet as mice and," he held up a hand to stall the protests he could see forming, "you're going to make sure Angela does the same," he ordered firmly.

"How?" demanded Sweets.

"And if we don't?" challenged Hodgins.

"I don't know how. Hell, for all I care you can gag her and hogtie her to the roof," he answered Sweets then turned to Hodgins.

"What?" snarked Hodgins. "Are you going to threaten to shoot us again?"

"No, Hodgins, I won't shoot you," Booth admitted. "But I will stop and put you out of the vehicle wherever we are when you irritate me," he promised solemnly.

"No, you won't," Hodgins laughed but his laughter quickly trailed off when he met Booth's steady gaze.

"Try me," Booth dared. Hodgins swallowed hard and nodded. He believed him. So did Sweets.

Twenty minutes later, the only sounds in the SUV were quiet grumbles from Angela and insistent shushing noises from Hodgins and Sweets.

"What did you do?" whispered Brennan, jerking her head toward the back seat.

"Me? What makes you think I did something?" he asked modestly. Brennan rolled her eyes and he grinned, glancing in the rearview mirror, noting that the kiddies had all settled down and appeared to be sleeping. "Why don't you lay back and close your eyes?" he suggested, reaching out for her hand and lifting it to his lips to plant a warm kiss in her palm. "We have about another hour until we get to the hotel."

"I'd rather stay awake and talk to you," she declined, linking their fingers and dropping their hands to rest on his thigh. This was her very favorite part of the day, the time when they sat close and shared the few things each had missed about the others' day, or just talked about anything that was bothering them or just held each other while they watched a movie, reveling in the contentment of just being with each other. "Did you talk to Parker today?"

"Yeah, I talked to Parker today and he said to tell you he was looking forward to next weekend." Brennan smiled. Whether or not to tell Parker about them immediately had been a difficult decision for them. They hadn't wanted to put the little boy in the awkward position of concealing anything from anyone so they had, at first, spent the nights when Booth had Parker apart, trying to maintain the illusion that nothing had changed between them. But Parker was a smart little boy and neither had been willing to lie to him when he had flat out asked them if they were boyfriend and girlfriend now. They had explained that, yes, they were together now, not mentioning that they had chosen not to tell anyone else for the moment. Parker had been thrilled but as far as they could tell, he hadn't mentioned it to anyone, including his mother or Max, apparently content to let them come out in their own time.

"Me, too," Brennan murmured. She had a special day planned for Parker and Booth in the paleontology department at the Jeffersonian. One of the professors there owed her a favor and she wanted to show them why she loved her digs so much so she had arranged for them to excavate a small dinosaur, figuring her boys would be more open to digging up dinosaur bones as opposed to human ones. Mainly, she just wanted them to get a feel for the excitement and wonder of making new discoveries.

"Going to tell me what we're doing?" he teased, knowing she wouldn't because he had asked the same question every day since she had told him to clear the day for him and Parker.

"Nope. It's still a surprise," she chimed in as expected, smiling up at him.

His eyes left the road and skimmed over her beautiful face and his heart clenched in his chest. _God, he loved her_. She and Parker were the best things in his life and he was beyond thankful that they loved each other without reservation so he wasn't faced with the hard choices a lot of people had to make when it came down to love and family. Despite the sad circumstances requiring their little road trip and the irritating presence of the three stooges in the back seat, he was perfectly happy and content to drive through the night, holding her hand and listening to her voice, catching the occasional glimpse of the light in her eyes that told him she felt the same way.

Hodgins watched Booth and Brennan through slitted eyes, his head resting against the window, stifling a sigh. He didn't care what Daisy or Angela said, what he was seeing with his very own eyes were two people that loved each other deeply and were used to sharing their days and nights with each other. There was an intimacy, a oneness in their interactions that just didn't happen overnight, those two were together and had been for a while. Interestingly enough, he didn't feel betrayed or angry, he just felt happy for them.

He couldn't help but admire Daisy's diabolical plan for revenge. The girl definitely had skills. It had been absolutely brilliant of her to take away the one thing they had all wanted so much but he couldn't really blame her, they had all deserved it. And he knew just exactly what he was going to do with his discovery. Absolutely nothing. He was going to keep his mouth shut and leave Booth and Brennan alone. They seemed to be doing fine on their own and the last thing they needed was their supposed friends sticking their noses in and causing trouble. They would eventually convince the doubting Angela that they were a couple and there would probably be a few fireworks then but, for the moment, he wasn't worried about it. Feeling Angela snuggling closer in her sleep, he tightened the arm around her shoulders, adjusted himself into a more comfortable position and closed his eyes, enjoying his own slice of heaven for as long as it lasted.


	31. Chapter 31

**Hey, guys, got a little carried away with this one but I hope you all enjoy. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

It was actually more like two hours later when they reached the motel they would be using for the night because it had started raining heavily only a few miles from the restaurant and visibility was severely limited. Booth knew that Brennan was fretting over what the rain was doing to her crime scene by the way she kept glancing outside and chewing her lower lip but there was nothing either of them could do about it so he squeezed her hand, giving her what comfort and reassurance he could. Since he was concentrating on the road so hard, he had actually been glad when the three stooges had stirred from their short nap to divert Brennan's attention from worrying. He didn't miss the way Angela had glanced at their clasped hands and rolled her eyes but he didn't care. It wasn't his problem if the artist didn't believe what was right in front of her and he wasn't going to waste his time trying to convince her of anything. She would eventually figure it out. He was especially glad the trio had apparently taken his threats seriously and were on their best behavior when they awoke, keeping the conversation light and general with no singing involved. Thank God.

"Please tell me you're kidding," Angela whispered pleadingly as Booth slowed and pulled into the parking lot of the No Tell Motel. She was more than ready to get out of the SUV, stretch her legs and find a comfortable bed for the night but she wasn't sure this was the place to do any of those things. This place made the Bates Motel look warm and inviting.

"Whoa," breathed Hodgins, his eyes rapidly surveying the dilapidated motel, "is it just me or is this place kind of…," his voice trailed off.

"Creepy," supplied Sweets quietly, "and no, it's not just you. This place has a major creep factor going on."

"Cut the bellyaching from the back seat," Booth ordered, his eyes moving over the small motel set slightly back from the road, surrounded by thick woods coming almost up to the building on three sides. There were only a couple of bare light bulbs burning outside the rooms and only the N in the flashing sign wasn't burned out, casting the entire place in eerie, dancing shadows. From what little he could actually make out, it looked like the building hadn't been painted in decades, gutters were hanging broken and forgotten in several places. In truth, it looked like it had been abandoned for years and probably should be condemned. Since they hadn't seen even another house for at least twenty miles, he had to admit the place was a little creepy. Wincing, he hated to think how bad the inside would be if the outside was this neglected. "It's just somewhere to sleep tonight and we've stayed in worse," he said bracingly, ignoring his own disquiet.

"No, we haven't," Brennan immediately countered, hating to disagree with Booth but many of the camps she had stayed at in third world countries would be considered luxury accommodations compared to what she could see of this place.

"Yeah, it's pretty bad," Booth admitted to Brennan, "but we don't have much of a choice."

"Why can't we just find somewhere else?" asked Angela imploringly.

"I'm not trying to be difficult here, Booth, but I gotta say I'm with Ange on this one," Hodgins threw in his two cents.

"Me, too," piped in Sweets, much too cheerfully to suit Booth. They were all three beginning to irritate him again.

"As much as I live to find you three prima donnas the fanciest accommodations around, how long has it been since you saw another motel?" he asked sarcastically, turning to give them an irritated look.

"79.3 miles the way we just came," Brennan answered, glancing at the screen of the Garmin and instantly doing the calculations in her head.

"Exactly," he gave her a smile then turned back to the stooges. "I'm not backtracking in this weather so you can either stay here or sleep in the car," he said firmly, giving them the _I've had just about enough of this_ evil eye that every parent eventually develops. Three sets of eyes dropped and mumbled apologies came his way. Satisfied, he turned to smile and wink at Brennan. "Ready?" he asked turning to open his door, knowing she would want to come in with him despite the rain.

"Let's go," she grinned back, opening her door and sprinting for the office. There was, of course, no covered area to park under and they were both drenched by the time they scooted into the office.

Angela watched them go then glanced around nervously. Suddenly, making a decision, she reached across Hodgins and opened his door. "Let me out," she ordered a surprised Hodgins.

"What? Angela, it's raining cats and dogs out there. They'll be back in a minute then you won't have to get wet but once," he replied, patting her hand condescendingly as if he was doing her a favor to share that with her.

Luckily for him, she was too creeped out by the motel from Hell to get pissed by his attitude. "Yeah, I get that, Hodgie, but, in case you haven't noticed, this place has Welcome, serial killers, written all over it. And while I appreciate the fact that an axe murderer would have to go through you or Sweets to get to me, I would feel much better if I was standing next to Booth who happens to have a freaking gun. So move your ass!" The shove she gave him almost sent him sprawling on the wet ground but he caught himself on the door handle. Quickly considering her words, he glanced around and decided he wasn't scared but he sure could use the opportunity to stretch his legs. He took off right behind her, barely taking the time to shut the door.

Sweets had seen enough scary movies to know what always happened to the one person left alone in the vehicle in front of the dark, creepy motel, especially when it was raining and he wasn't taking any chances. Within seconds, he, too, was standing in the motel office and feeling much safer. Looking around curiously, he noted that although the furniture and the room itself were worn and dated, it was spotlessly clean and his hope of not catching a communicable disease in the room itself rose. His attention was caught by the desk clerk giving him a once over and turning back to an obviously grim and frustrated Booth and Brennan. That was never a good combination for either of them so he stepped closer to the desk to see if he could help.

"Another one?" drawled the desk clerk who was a man in his mid fifties. "Just how many people you two planning on putting in one room? This here is a family place and we don't allow none of the carrying on here like they do in the city," he drawled, his appreciative gaze running over Brennan then moving on to Angela. Angela shivered and moved closer to Hodgins, thinking she had probably been safer in the car.

"Mr. Watts, I've been trying to explain to you that one room is inadequate for five people. We require a minimum of one additional room." Brennan actually ground her teeth together and Sweets' eyes widened. It was one of the anthropologist's tells and it meant she was seriously pissed. Booth automatically moved to put himself between the insolent clerk and his partner but Brennan caught his arm, stilling him instantly, her eyes never leaving the ever so delightful clerk. She could handle this.

"Yep, that's what you said," Mr. Watts agreed obligingly. "But like I said, I surely can't help you with that."

"Why not?" Brennan demanded in irritation, completely losing patience with the man's double talk and the way he had been eying her since they had walked into the room.

"We're done full up." Booth and Brennan shared a confused look. The only other vehicle in the parking lot was the mobile lab. The place was small but it had to have at least a dozen rooms.

"Mr. Watts, this is official FBI business," Booth began as pleasantly as he could manage considering that he was fighting the urge to slug the guy for the way he was looking at his Bones.

"Yep, you done said that. Showed me that shiny badge and all but I still can't help you out." Booth looked like he wanted to strangle the taciturn clerk but Sweets didn't think the guy was being deliberately obtuse.

"Perhaps you could just check and see if you have any additional rooms available," Sweets suggested politely.

"Don't have to check," Watts drawled. "Only got three rooms to rent out. That fancy lady that came in on the bus already took two of them so that just leaves one," he finished as if none of them had the mental capacity to reason that out for themselves.

"How can you possibly make a living from a motel with only three rooms to rent?" asked Hodgins, truly curious.

Watts shrugged. "I just bought the place a few months ago and them three's the only ones fixed up enough to be fit to rent out. Place wasn't ready to open yet but when them Federal fellas came in a few hours ago, waving their badges around and saying they needed my help, I moved in a few beds and got them three ready. The rest don't even got beds in 'em," he finished, squashing any hopes that another room would magically become available. "I hate to rush you fine people but I'm about to close up for the night. Do you want the room or not?"

Booth and Brennan shared a look. Watts' story explained the general lack of maintenance around the place and they really didn't have a choice unless they wanted to drive two hours in the pouring rain in the opposite direction. So, it looked like they were going to be sharing a room with the three stooges. _Oh, boy, this was going to be fun. Not._

"Yes, we want the room," Booth sighed in resignation.

"Need all of you to sign in," Watts said amiably, turning the register toward Booth and Brennan. They quickly signed in and handed the pens off to Hodgins and Angela who had stepped up behind them. After waiting for Sweets to sign in, Watts turned the book back around and perused the signatures, one hand grabbing a key and handing it off to Booth. The other hand reached under the counter and came up with an envelope. "The pretty lady on the bus left this here for," he looked at the envelope and read, "Booth and Brennan."

Brennan held out her hand and took the envelope, quickly tearing it open and pulling out the folded sheet of paper, quickly scanning the contents and ignoring the three people hanging over her shoulders so they could see, too. Rolling his eyes, Booth shouldered Sweets aside and began to read.

_Booth and Brennan,_

_I'm assuming that by now you have been filled in on the room situation by the delightful Mr. Watts but I wanted to touch base and explain the reasoning behind the designation of the rooms. _

_If anyone is thinking of using the cots in the mobile lab for the night, forget it. The two agents Deputy Director Hacker sent along for security have already claimed those. They assured me they were under orders to guard the mobile lab but I think they were just afraid to actually step into one of the rooms. Smart men._

_Although I, personally, find your choice of accommodations for the group utterly charming, the interns were debating on whether or not they should sleep with knives under their pillows so I gave Wendell, Fisher and Vincent the only room with a queen sized bed. It seemed only fair since they are much larger than Daisy and I and one can only hope the three of them together can fight off the roving hatchet murderers they seem certain will be coming for them during the night._

_How are Daisy and I faring? We're just great, thanks so much for asking. The logical thing to do would be for Brennan and Angela to share a room with Daisy and me but as you read this, Ms. Wick and I will, no doubt, be snuggled in a freaking twin sized bed that is apparently standard for this room because Motel Hell doesn't yet have the luxury of cots or chairs in the rooms. _

_And next we come to the room reserved for the five of you. How did you rate a room with two beds, you ask? I'd be happy to explain. I could say that it's because of the size of the group and that is partially true but, mostly, it's because I find the prospect of whatever sleeping arrangements you come up with so amusing that it just might save the ever so talkative Ms. Wick's life. Unless, of course, she talks as much in her sleep as she does while awake, then I'm afraid she's toast. But don't worry about me. If it comes down to a trial, I feel certain it will be ruled justifiable homicide. _

_Wow, I feel much better now so, on that note, I'm going to wish you all a goodnight. I would add pleasant dreams but we all know I wouldn't mean it so let's just go with see you in the morning._

_Cam_

Brennan was surprised to hear Angela snicker and scanned the note again because she really didn't see the humor. By the time she had read it again, Angela, Hodgins and Sweets were all howling with laughter and even Booth was grinning. She still didn't see what was funny but she wasn't about to ask.

"Okay, you guys, let's get going," Booth grinned, picturing the three male interns huddled together in one bed waiting on the boogey man to come after them. He wasn't sure if the stooges were laughing over that image or Cam having to share a bed with Daisy but either one was laugh worthy in his estimation. He did have a slight twinge of alarm that Cam apparently found their potential sleeping arrangements humorous but they had two beds so how bad could it be?

Less than a minute later, Booth pushed open the motel room door and instantly knew why Cam was so amused by their sleeping arrangements. Angela, Hodgins and Sweets pushed past him and tumbled into the room like playful puppies with Brennan bringing up the rear. Booth stepped inside and closed the door behind them. They all five looked around the large room, vastly relieved to see that the inside was in pristine condition. The walls were muted beige but were gleaming with new coats of paint, the new carpet smell was prominent and the built in cabinets didn't have a nick or scratch on them. It appeared that the room had been gutted and completely redone and it was spotlessly clean. It only took seconds for them to scan the room and be pleasantly surprised then five pairs of eyes focused on the only other furniture in the room.

Beds. Yes, as in plural and one of them was exactly what you would expect a standard motel bed to look like but the other was not. It appeared to be part of a set of stackable bunk beds that were typically used for children and Booth had a sneaking suspicion that the bed Daisy and Cam were sharing was its counterpart. He knew Hodgins and Angela were thinking the same thing when they glanced at the bed and broke into laughter but that didn't last long. They quickly sobered when they realized that Cam might have the last laugh because someone in this room was going to be spending the night in that bed.

"Why the hell would anyone use a kid's bunk bed in a motel room?" asked Hodgins inanely. No one answered because no one had a clue.

"I don't guess it would do me any good to call dibs on the big bed, huh?" queried Angela, walking over, sitting down and bouncing up and down to test the firmness of the mattress. Satisfied with her findings, she glanced up to find Hodgins and Sweets still staring at the beds, obviously going over the various combinations for the sleeping arrangements in their minds. Booth and Brennan appeared to be having a conversation with their eyes and subtle nods and shakes of the head.

"What's the plan, dude?" asked Hodgins, turning to Booth because try as he might, he just couldn't come up with an ideal combo dividing the five of them into the two available beds. Well, he could but he couldn't really see Booth going for Hodgins and Angela in the small bed, despite the generosity of allotting the larger one to Booth, Brennan and Sweets.

"Bones and I will let you three have the room and we'll take the SUV," Booth stated as if the matter had been settled. It wouldn't be the first time he and Brennan had let the back seats down and spent some time in the back of the SUV. In fact, it was surprisingly comfortable and it was a huge plus that the stooges would be elsewhere.

"No freaking way," objected Angela vehemently, hopping off the big bed and going over to the smaller one to repeat the bouncing process. Not bad, she decided, with a moue of approval.

"_You_ want to spend the night in the SUV?" Booth questioned incredulously.

"No," snorted Angela, "but I do want to survive my night at the Bates motel and lucky for me, you have a gun. So, until the sun comes up, Studly, you can consider us joined at the hip. Where you and Bren go, I go," she finished firmly. Booth rolled his eyes and glanced toward Sweets and Hodgins and knew the SUV idea was out. Sweets had the same look on his face that Parker always got when he watched something that scared him. He always went to bed by himself like a big boy but he always found his way into Booth's bed before the night was over. Sweets would be joining the SUV brigade sometime during the night. Hodgins was harder to read but Booth didn't think he looked all that happy at his suggestion either. Booth felt like beating his head against a wall. He just wanted to get this mess sorted out, lay down and hold Brennan in his arms a few hours of peace and quiet before he had to deal with the stooges again. He was opening his mouth to snap at Angela when he felt Brennan's hand slipping into his.

"She's really scared, Booth," Brennan whispered, knowing that Angela spooked easily, remembering that it had been weeks after the witch in the woods case before she would go to sleep without a night light burning.

"What do you suggest, Angela?" Booth asked with a resigned sigh.

"Well, since Bren and I are the smallest, it would make sense for us to take this bed," she patted the bed she was sitting on firmly, "and the three of you could have the bigger one," she grinned, patting herself on the back for suggesting the logical thing instead of what she really wanted, which was her and Hodgins in the same bed.

"NO!"

"No way!"

"I don't think so!"

Angela's head jerked back and Brennan blinked at the adamancy of the simultaneous objections of the men. Brennan didn't like the idea of not sleeping with Booth either but there was no way she and Booth would fit in the smaller bed and she sure as hell wasn't sleeping in the bigger one with Angela, Hodgins and Sweets. "It makes sense, Booth," she offered without any enthusiasm whatsoever.

"No," Booth said simply. No freaking way was he sharing a bed with Hodgins and Sweets when there was a viable alternative. Or ever. He'd sleep outside in the rain first and the looks on Hodgins' and Sweets' face said ditto for them. Brennan's eyes met Angela's and they shared an it must be a guy thing shrug and rolled their eyes.

"Angela and I could take the little bed," Hodgins said, trying to keep the anticipation out of his voice. Unfortunately, he succeeded a little too well.

"Don't do me any favors, Hodgins," Angela snapped, offended.

"Ange, I didn't mean it like that," he assured her, starting toward her but she crossed her arms over her chest, stuck her nose in the air with a sniff and flopped around on the bed until her back was facing him.

"I'll take the little bed," offered Sweets.

"No, you won't. Angela and I will," Hodgins turned on Sweets.

"Why do you get to decide? Who died and made you boss?" demanded Sweets childishly.

"I wouldn't sleep with you now if..if..if," Angela sputtered at Hodgins but she couldn't think of anything bad enough to say to finish off the thought. "Well, I just wouldn't," she assured him over her shoulder.

Booth and Brennan looked at the three supposedly professional adults who were bickering like three year olds incredulously and Booth had had enough. If they were going to act like children, he had no problem treating them like children. "Enough!" he bellowed and there was sudden silence in the room. "Sit," he ordered, pointing to the empty bed and eyeing Hodgins and Sweets with a look that told them they would be smart to do as they were told. In the blink of an eye, they had slunk over to the bed and sat. Booth nodded in grim satisfaction, beginning to pace in front of the trio, his hands on his hips.

Brennan leaned against the wall and fought a smile. She had expected Booth to unload on the others well before now and she hoped he really let them have it because they were getting on her last nerve. Plus, she loved it when he got all hyped up and growly, he tended to be extremely aggressive when that happened and that turned her on tremendously. Not that it would do her any good tonight but she could still enjoy the show, she decided, her eyes roving caressingly over his pacing form.

"The three of you have been a pain in the ass since we left DC," Brennan smothered a laugh at the gasps of surprise and looks of innocence flashing across the faces of the three people seated on the beds. Hard to believe, but they apparently hadn't actually realized how annoying they were in a confined space. "So we're going to set some ground rules here and now," Booth held up a hand for silence as Angela started sputtering, "or you're on your own with the psychos for the night," he assured the outraged artist who apparently believed him because she pouted but she zipped her lip. Brennan was impressed. Even she had never been able to shut her best friend up that effectively.

"There's no need to treat us like children, Booth," Sweets whined.

"Then stop acting like children," Booth snapped. Taking a deep breath, he ran a frustrated hand down his face, holding on to his temper with both hands. He had several things he'd very much like to say to these three but now wasn't the time or place. If he let loose now it was bound to get ugly and the upcoming case was going to need everyone's full concentration. They couldn't afford to have anyone distracted by hurt feelings or personal issues. Airing their dirty laundry would have to wait until they were back in DC but in the interest of maintaining his and Brennan's sanity and getting any rest at all tonight, the three stooges were going to have to understand they had boundaries. "Look, guys," Booth said more softly, "this case is going to be bad enough without us being at each other's throats. All I'm asking for is a little respect and common courtesy from you three." The three indignant stooges who had bristled under Booth's irate scrutiny began to shift restlessly and look rather sheepish as if their childish prior behavior was just beginning to register.

"We can do that," Hodgins answered easily. "We're sorry," he offered further after glancing at his partners in crime.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to add the stipulation of no more singing in the car," Brennan threw in with a shudder, lest Booth forget to mention it. In her opinion that should be rule number one.

"Okay, Bren," Angela laughed, "no more singing in the car. Got it. What about the hotel room? Can we sing in here?" she teased and almost fell off of the bed laughing at the look of horror on her friend's face at the possibility.

"How about we go with no singing, period?" Booth stepped in easily, before this could get out of hand again. _God, these three were about a thousand times more exhausting than Parker and he was nine._ Booth wasn't sure who that said more about and he didn't have enough energy or the interest to give it further thought. "So we're clear that this trip is work related and not a family vacation?" Booth phrased the question much more politely than he could have because they deserved a little respect and courtesy from him if he was going to ask for the same from them.

"Yes, Dad," Sweets grinned, his heart warming at the implication that if they had been on vacation, it would be a family thing.

"We'll be good from now on. We promise," Angela added solemnly, even though her eyes were dancing with amusement.

"Yeah, we will, and we'll start with getting our things out of the car," Hodgins agreed, standing and holding out his hand for the keys. Booth handed them over without hesitation. It was no skin off of his nose if Hodgins and Sweets wanted to get wet to win some brownie forgiveness points. To his surprise, Angela bounced off the bed and followed the men out the door. Without hesitation, Booth walked over, locked the door, leaned back against it and crooked a finger at Brennan.

"They won't be gone long, Booth," she warned even as she pushed away from the wall and walked toward him.

"Then I guess we'll just have to make the most of the time we've got," he assured her huskily, his palms cupping her face and tilting it upward, his eyes fixed on her lips. Brennan leaned against his chest, her hands running over the front of his damp t-shirt. Deliberately running the tip of her tongue over her bottom lip, she was gratified to see his eyes darken and feel his heartbeat pick up under her palms. "Tease," he accused in a whisper just before his lips settled over hers and pushed them apart. He hadn't been kidding about making the most of the time they had, his tongue immediately seeking entrance into her mouth.

Moaning, she wrapped her arms around his neck and opened her mouth, her tongue darting out to slide against his. In a heartbeat, he had reversed their positions and she was pressed between his hard body and an even harder door, her belly tightening and her heart thundering in her chest. She wanted to drag him over to one of those beds and crawl all over him. Her hands almost had his t-shirt up to his shoulders when she realized the pounding she was hearing wasn't from her heart.

"Hey, it's raining out here. Let us in," Hodgins yelled, banging on the door so hard it rattled against Brennan's back.

Booth's head came up but it took him a second to put things together and remember where they were. "Dammit," he muttered, pulling the gaping edges of her unbuttoned shirt together. He honestly hadn't meant to do any more than kiss her a couple of times but he completely lost his head whenever they put their hands on each other and his body was more than ready to take it further. Focusing on Brennan's face, his whole body clenched as he surveyed her slumberous eyes, her kiss reddened lips, her hair all tousled from his hands. Those three were going to know what he and Brennan had been doing the instant they looked at her. Not that Booth wanted to keep it from them any longer, he just didn't want any more drama tonight and he had a feeling that Angela's reaction would definitely qualify as dramatic.

Brennan felt exactly the same way. She couldn't care less who knew about her and Booth now but she was getting very tired and, if she couldn't drag Booth off to bed for naughty purposes, she just wanted to lie down with him and close her eyes for a while. The doorknob rattled and someone pounded loudly. With a sigh, Brennan reached up and gave Booth a quick peck on the lips. "I'm going to go take a shower. Could you hand my bag into the bathroom?" she asked, already halfway across the room. Longingly, Booth watched her until she closed the bathroom door behind her, thinking of following her in and scrubbing her back. Letting go of that dream, he turned and opened the door to three, sputtering, very wet squints.

"What the hell, Dude?" Hodgins demanded, pushing past Booth, loaded down with luggage. His irritation quickly faded to amusement as he noted Booth's rumpled shirt and mussed hair, not needing to ask any questions to know they had interrupted something.

"Did you lock us out?" queried Angela suspiciously, sauntering past Booth only carrying her purse and make up bag.

"Not cool," Sweets chided, following her in, his hair plastered to his head and drops of rain were still pouring down his face and he, too, was carrying several bags.

"Yes, Angela, I locked you out," Booth admitted without a hint of remorse in his voice.

"Why would you do that?" she demanded, turning to face him, her arms all akimbo. "In case you haven't noticed, it's coming a monsoon out there," she accused, plucking her wet blouse away from her body and shaking her arms hard to deliberately spray Booth with the droplets on her skin.

"Hey," objected Booth, holding up his hands as shields. "Okay, fine, I shouldn't have locked you out but I needed a minute with Bones. I thought you three geniuses would have enough sense to stand under the overhang and not directly in the rain," he added defensively, starting to feel more than a little bit bad because they really did look like drowned rats.

"I've got news for you, Booth, there's not a single square foot of that overhang that doesn't have holes in it. It might as well not be there for all the protection it offers," Sweets scolded, swiping his arm across his streaming face which didn't really help dry it off because you could probably ring the water out of his shirt.

"Yeah, Booth, whatever you had to tell Bren couldn't have been worth us standing out in that mess," Angela let her eyes do her scolding for her as she walked toward the bathroom and, hopefully, towels to dry off with. "Even you trying to get in her pants wouldn't have been worth that and God knows _that _wasn't happening," she muttered under her breath as she strode past Hodgins who hadn't seen the point in bitching about something they couldn't change and was busily pulling dry clothes from his bag.

Booth heard Angela muttering but couldn't quite make out the words. He didn't particularly care what she was bellyaching about this time even when Hodgins suddenly turned away and appeared to be inexplicably choking on something. Ignoring the three of them, Booth leaned over and grabbed the handles of Brennan's bag but before he could even start toward the bathroom to hand it off, someone else started pounding on the door. _Great, just what he needed, someone else to join the party. _Without bothering to check the peephole, he jerked the door open, figuring if he had to fight off one of Angela's serial killers, it would at least give him a chance to relieve a little of the stress generated by the stooges. If he got really lucky, their visitor might thin the herd a bit. But no such luck for him. It was only Mr. Watts, holding a huge stack of fluffy, white towels.

"I saw them three geniuses standing out in the rain and thought you might be needing these," Watts said, thrusting the towels into Booth's arms then turning and striding away without another word.

"Thanks," Angela called after Watts' retreating back. Ignoring the fact that the man had just called her, Hodgins and Sweets morons, she grabbed a couple of towels and started to dry herself off. Booth tossed the remaining towels on the bed and, once again, headed toward the bathroom.

"Bones, I've got your bag," he called softly, tapping lightly on the door. Seconds later, the door opened a crack and a bare arm appeared in front of him, palm extended upward. Ignoring the urge to offer his assistance with dressing, he reluctantly placed the handles of her bag in her hand and closed her fingers around them with a squeeze.

"Thanks." Came softly from behind the door as she reluctantly let go of his hand, pulled her bag inside and closed the door.

A rather hectic hour and a half later, they had all had their turns in the shower, the lights were off and everyone was all snuggled into bed. After discussing every possible variation of the potential sleeping arrangements, they had finally unanimously approved of the only one that was really feasible. It wasn't ideal but it was the best they could do with what they had to work with. A muffled "oomph" from the twin bed as Sweets, who had gotten his wish to sleep alone, tried to turn over, drew a giggle out of Angela and made Booth smile at the memory of the lanky psychologist contorting his body until his knees were folded against his chest to fit in that bed.

"Ouch. Crap," muttered Sweets as some part of his body thudded against the wooden rails of his bed and Hodgins laughed out loud. "It's not funny, Hodgins. That hurt," whined Sweets.

"Oh, quit your bellyaching, Sweets," advised Hodgins. "If either one of the girls takes a deep breath, Booth and I are going to both wind up on the floor. We've all got our problems tonight so deal with it and go to sleep." Booth wanted to laugh but he didn't because he was fairly certain Hodgins was correct. The only way the four of them fit into the bed was turned on their sides and getting way more up close and personal than Booth ever wanted to be with either Hodgins or Angela. It didn't seem to bother Angela and Brennan who had simply rolled their eyes and both scooted toward the middle of the bed, automatically knowing that specific arrangement was the only one Hodgins and Booth would be comfortable with.

"Yeah, I can see how rough you and Booth are having it tonight, Hodgins, being in a freaking real bed with two beautiful women and all. You have my deepest sympathies for your suffering," Sweets shot back sarcastically. Booth was just about to call the children down again when muffled snorts of laughter coming from where Brennan's face was buried against his chest completely dissipated the tension. Within seconds, Angela's giggles joined Brennan's then they were all laughing and it felt great, especially since Hodgins and Booth didn't wind up on the floor.

"You're right, Sweets. I wouldn't change places with you for anything in the world," Booth said quietly, his arms tightening around Brennan and he felt her smile against his shoulder as she snuggled even closer.

"Me, either," agreed Hodgins, pulling Angela closer and never wanting to let her go.

"That was quite a compliment, Sweets. Thank you," Brennan said softly, for some reason not wanting the young man to feel left out. "Goodnight," she finished around a wide yawn.

"You're welcome, Dr. Brennan. Goodnight," Sweets returned just as softly and everyone could hear the smile in his voice. "Goodnight, everyone."

"Night, Sweets. Goodnight, Angela, Hodgins." As Angela and Hodgins called out their round of goodnights, Booth's hand tangled in Brennan's hair and tilted her head up. "Goodnight, Baby," he leaned down and whispered into her ear, his lips settling on her cheek and moving slowly toward her mouth. It was so dark in the room that Hodgins and Angela couldn't possibly see what they were doing and he had no intention of foregoing his goodnight kiss. Besides, he really didn't give a damn if they knew he was kissing the love of his life.

"Goodnight, Booth," she returned huskily, her hands sliding from his chest to his face, her head tilting further back to give him better access to her mouth. His lips settled on hers and he kissed her thoroughly, possessively and so passionately that she had to force herself not to follow his mouth when he pulled back with flattering reluctance, his hands restlessly smoothing up and down her back. With a contented sigh, she settled her head back into the notch between his neck and shoulder and closed her eyes, relaxing against him, loving the feelings of safety, security, love and acceptance she always found in his arms.

Angela inwardly rolled her eyes at the sounds coming from behind her but was too content snuggled up against Hodgins to turn over and see how Booth and Brennan were making those kissing noises. She had to give them an A for effort because they certainly sounded realistic. She doubted they were actually kissing but on the off chance that they were, she sure as hell wasn't going to interrupt. She was simply going to ignore it and hope it led them to where they were tonight for real. In bed. Together. Without her and Hodgins, of course.

_Hodgins_, she thought with an inner sigh. _What was she going to do about him? About Wendell?_ The feelings she was having lying in her former fiancée's arms so innocently told her what her heart wanted her to do but she had already known that her heart belonged to him and always would. She just hadn't been ready to deal with it. She wasn't sure that she was any more ready now but she knew one thing for sure. She had to end it with Wendell. Being with him when she wanted Hodgins was doing them all a disservice. Just making that decision felt like a huge step and she was too tired and happy to be where she was to worry about it anymore tonight. Closing her eyes, she gave herself permission to just enjoy tonight and take it one day at a time until she got her life back to where she wanted it to be.

Hodgins was more content holding Angela close than he had been since the last time they had lain together like this. It felt like it had been forever and yesterday at the same time. Without Booth and Brennan in the same bed, of course. That part was a little weird but, if it meant he got to hold Angela all night, he really couldn't complain. He loved Angela and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her and, in his opinion, tonight showed a big step in the right direction. Granted, circumstances had forced them into the same bed but she was snuggled up like she was enjoying it as much as he and he began to see the future he wanted for them more clearly than he had in a long time. But for tonight, the future didn't matter, there was only the present.

Sweets let out a loud snore and turned over in his sleep, grunting when some part of him banged against the rails of his bed.

Booth's hands absently smoothed up and down Brennan's back as he felt her shift against him and settle into sleep more fully, his mind automatically reviewing available security precautions to make sure he had made this room as safe as possible. He knew he had, he would never put his Bones at risk by being careless, but this was a little ritual he went through each night. He took his role of protector seriously and he would willingly die to protect the woman in his arms. Plus, until they returned to DC, everyone in this room, hell, every squint along for the ride was his responsibility. Which probably meant more than a few headaches were waiting for him in the coming days, but he had chosen to do this job so he could deal with the headaches and keep everyone safe until they got back to DC.

Unless, of course, the three stooges started acting up again then he just might have to shoot them himself. He could always borrow Cam's claim of justifiable homicide or even self defense. If even one person on the jury had ever been trapped in a car with three small children for several hours, he would never be convicted. On that cheerful note, he shifted to a more comfortable position and closed his eyes, knowing he needed to get some sleep. A tired, grumpy FBI agent, the three stooges, a pissed off Cam, various annoying assistants and a forensic anthropologist with limited people skills and even less patience and tact was just not a combination that boded well for anyone involved. It would be a train wreck just waiting to happen and he sure as hell didn't want to face that first thing in the morning. _So, should he give the two other agents a head's up on how to deal with everyone? Or did he let them muddle through and figure it out on their own? Let the squints break the newbies in just like they had done to him using trial by fire?_ He still hadn't decided when he fell asleep.


	32. Chapter 32

**Hey, guys, I'm back. Did you miss me? Sorry for the delay. Since we're about to get into some heavy stuff, I gave Musie her head with this one and she got a little long winded. Hope you guys still enjoy it. Remember reviews=love. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth's cell phone rang at 5:41AM, interrupting the damned fine dream he had been trying to finish all night. Sweets snored like a freight train, Hodgins talked about bugs and slime in his sleep and Angela couldn't seem to stay still for more than 10 minutes at a time, wiggling and squirming and kicking at the covers, obviously just as hyper in her sleep as she was awake. Not that Booth wanted or needed to know any of those things about the stooges but not being used to it and still having hyper alert sniper senses, it seemed like he had been awakened by every little sound or movement, like he hadn't slept at all and he wasn't a happy camper as he twisted around to grab his phone before it woke anyone else.

"Booth," he snapped then looked down to see Brennan blinking sleepily up at him. _Sorry_, he mouthed using his free hand to push the tangled mass of hair back from her face.

Brennan came awake at the first ring of the phone. She hadn't slept well at all, not used to all the extra people and noises in her and Booth's bedroom. She opened her eyes and looked into his beloved face, warm, brown eyes smiling down at her, his hand tenderly stroking her cheek and she wanted to attack him on the spot. She was by no means a slave to her body's demands but she always wanted to make love with him and was used to being able to do so at their leisure. Lying so close and not being able to do anything about it last night had been almost torturous. Unfortunately for her, that wasn't going to change anytime soon. As she understood it, privacy at the base camp would be almost nonexistent so she would just have to resign herself to a few days abstinence. Trying to convince herself it wouldn't be that bad, her eyes widened in surprise and confusion when Booth pulled away from her and sat up on the side of the bed, running an agitated hand through his hair.

"Damn," he muttered. "How the hell did they find out?"

"No, you can't arrest them for being on a public road. Use your head here and don't make this situation any worse than it already is." Booth shook his head, wondering where the hell the bureau found some of its newer members. Admittedly, this agent was being utilized for his knowledge of the area in this particular situation but he should still know this stuff already.

"What about the mudslide?" _Good news_, Brennan surmised at Booth's nod at the answer he received.

"Is the road in finished?" _Not such good news_, she knew when Booth's lips tightened and he expelled a long sigh.

"It's a bus, Breyer, a freaking, big ass, heavy bus so you guys are going to have to do better than that." Brennan could see and feel Booth's rising frustration so she wiggled around and sat up on the side of the bed, leaning against him. He slipped an arm around her shoulders and dropped a kiss on the top of her head, his attention still on his conversation with the idiot in charge of getting them onsite.

"Fine." He gritted through clenched teeth then looked down into Brennan's supportive eyes and immediately felt calmer. "No, it's not fine," he clarified, "but here's what we're going to do. You're going to leave the road blocked off at the mudslide for now. That way the reporters can't get anywhere near the site. If they do somehow manage to slip through and step onto Federal land, then you can arrest them." Brennan couldn't help but smile at the eye roll Booth gave at the other agent's obvious excitement over getting to arrest someone. "Yeah, Breyer, I'm sure that'll be loads of fun for you. We'll be there in a couple of hours so just try not to FUBAR everything up until then." Booth had his doubts about the young agent being able to follow that order.

Brennan winced at the offended squawking coming from Booth's phone. She wasn't familiar with the anagram he had used but, apparently, the other agent was and didn't care for it. Booth didn't seem concerned that he had upset the other agent, calmly interrupting the tirade.

"Yeah, yeah, Breyer. I've heard it all before so you can lose the attitude. The bottom line is that my team needs to get to that site and we're running out of time to do this quietly if the press has already been tipped off. Now, I just need you to tell me when you can make that happen," Booth said calmly then stiffened and dropped his arm from around Brennan's shoulders to stand up and begin pacing.

"Unacceptable," he snapped. Brennan knew the other agent had said something not to his liking when Booth stopped midstride, his eyes narrowing and glinting with anger.

"Yes, Breyer, my team _is_ special enough for us to go to all this trouble," Brennan shivered at the very quietness of Booth's voice. It meant he was very pissed off. "They're not just good at what they do, they are unparalleled. We have some of the best and brightest minds in the world at our disposal and we are currently wasting their very valuable time. So, instead of whining about the problems you're running into, I need you to shake it off and figure it out. If you don't think you can do that, I need you to tell me now, so I can find someone who can."

"I understand there's no way you can make it happen in two hours, Breyer," Booth said with strained patience. "That's why I want you to have a chopper standing by when we get there. Dr. Brennan and her team will fly in and assess the site while we figure out what to do about the bus and the reporters. Can you handle that?"

"Good," Booth nodded in satisfaction and snapped his phone closed. Running a frustrated hand over his face, he turned back to Brennan to find Angela and Hodgins also sitting up in bed, staring at him. Sweets appeared to be wedged into his bed, struggling to free himself from its confines but his eyes were open, and he, too, was staring at Booth.

"It sounds like the crap has hit the fan," Hodgins ventured before Booth could speak.

"Yes, it does," granted Booth grimly. "Dammit, I can't believe the reporters beat us there. I know it's early but we need to get a move on," he told the assemblage but he needn't have bothered. All four were already in motion.

"That's okay, Booth," Angela said, leaving the bed, grabbing her bag and heading to the bathroom to get dressed.

"It's our job, Booth," Brennan said calmly, reaching for her phone. "Do you want me to call Cam?"

"Yeah, baby, that would be great. I'll get Templeton and Jenkins moving," he agreed, already dialing his phone thus missing the look of shock on Sweets' face as he fought free of the twin bed and dumped himself in the floor in the process. _Wow_, thought Sweets, _Angela was right, they were really good at this pretending to be together thing._ _Neither of them appeared to be the least bit uncomfortable at the endearment which meant they had been practicing this for quite some time. _

"I'll get the interns moving," Hodgins supplied, not even trying to suppress the amusement in his voice at Booth's slip or that neither partner seemed to even register it. Rolling out of bed and grabbing his phone, he dialed Vincent's number.

Thirty minutes later, Brennan stood at the vanity and impatiently pulled her hair back into a pony tail, her mind going over the equipment she would need to take on the helicopter with her and her team. She had been the last to have use of the bathroom because Cam had been groggy and grouchy when awakened and had ranted about sharing a room with Daisy much longer than Brennan had cared to listen before she could explain the reason for the call. Cam had then ranted about having to get up so early after Daisy had kept her awake most of the night snuggling. By that time, Brennan had felt she had shared all the pertinent information with Cam and had simply hung up on her. Other than Booth, she was having way too much one on one time with her friends and it was really starting to get on her nerves.

In addition, she was worried that her site was being compromised by the weather and the untrained personnel sent to guard it and was eager to get there and assess things for herself. She was so lost in cataloguing the potential problems they might run into that she started when a pair of strong arms came around her and Booth dropped a light kiss on the nape of her neck. Her eyes flew up to meet his in the mirror then darted around to see if the others had noticed. They had been hiding their relationship so long that she still instinctively sought to do so. To her delight, they were alone in the room.

"I didn't hear you come back in," Brennnan said with a smile, turning in his arms. She also hadn't heard the other three depart but she didn't want to talk about them during her stolen minutes alone with Booth. "Good morning," she said huskily, her arms slipping up around his neck to pull his head down.

"Good morning," he murmured against her lips, happy to cooperate. His lips opened over hers and he kissed her lingeringly, leisurely and very, very thoroughly, knowing this would have to last them both through the coming, grueling day. Brennan's arms tightened around Booth's neck and she moved closer, completely forgetting about everything and simply enjoying being this close and kissing him back. Booth's hands roamed over her back and he suddenly lifted her to sit on the counter, stepping between her spread thighs, his lips and hands becoming more aggressive. Moaning, she opened her mouth and pressed her chest against his, her lower abdomen tightening at the feel of his hardening length grazing her center as she wrapped her legs around him and pulled him closer.

Growling, Booth's hands went to her hips and jerked them to the very edge of the counter, his hips thrusting against her warmth, wanting to be inside her so badly he could taste it. It was beyond tacky to leave the others waiting outside while he and Brennan had a quickie. Beyond that, just the thought of doing that made their relationship seem cheap and tawdry and it could never be classified as that so he knew they wouldn't be making love right now. But he still couldn't make himself stop touching her. He needed this, holding her willing body close, showing her how much he loved her with his entire body. He would stop before they went too far but not quite yet.

Long, long minutes later, Booth reluctantly lifted his head and pulled his shaking hands from under her tank top. Dropping his forehead to rest against hers, breathing hard, his hands clenched and unclenched on the counter beside her hips to keep from grabbing her and dragging her to bed. Shuddering, Brennan fought the urge to scream in protest and pull him back into the kiss, her entire body shaking with the need for fulfillment. It took several long minutes and several deep, calming breaths for her to remember where they were and that they didn't have time for this.

"We have to go," she said shakily but neither made an effort to move.

"Yeah, we do," Booth sighed reluctantly, his body painfully hard and tight, "but I needed this." He cupped her face in his hands, his fingers gently stroking her cheeks and nuzzled his nose against hers. He desperately wanted to kiss her again but knew he wouldn't be able to stop himself if he kissed her like he wanted to_. The others were waiting on them and they had to go_, he repeated to keep himself in check but it didn't really help. He still wanted to drag her off to bed.

"I needed this, too," Brennan admitted, her hands mirroring Booth's, stroking his cheeks. "I need to ride with the interns so I can brief them and get our equipment together," she said, trying to get her thoughts back on work and off of dragging Booth to bed and ravishing him.

"Yeah, I guessed as much. I miss you already," he said and Brennan's heart melted. Since she really didn't have the words to tell him how it made her feel when he said such sweet, thoughtful things, she tried to show him, pulling his mouth to hers and slowly kissing him with all the love and utter adoration in her heart.

"If you keep kissing me like that, we're never going to get out of this room," Booth said seriously when she finally pulled back, wanting nothing more than to keep her here for at least the next few hours.

"Promises, promises," laughed Brennan, wiggling off the counter. Booth's breath hissed between clenched teeth and his body surged forward at the movement but he forced himself to step back and allow her to move toward her bag, knowing they had to go, despite his more carnal urges.

"I'm sorry we can't get the lab in right now but we will figure it out." He picked up both bags and gestured toward the door.

"I know you will, Booth," she said without a hint of doubt in her voice and his chest swelled with pride at her belief in him. "We can fly in with everything we need to start excavating. I won't actually need the lab in place until we have something to examine so you have some time." Booth nodded, determined not to let her down on this or anything else. He _would _get that lab where she needed it. "I need Hodgins and Cam to help get everything organized on the way but you can have Sweets and Angela," she offered generously.

"Thanks," Booth returned, trying to keep the sarcasm to a minimum_. His day was sure to improve after two hours trapped in the SUV with two of the three stooges. Not._

"You're welcome," Brennan returned brightly and Booth couldn't help but laugh. She threw him a questioning look then opened the door of their room barely avoiding a fist in the face from a bouncing, cheerful Daisy who had her hand raised to knock.

"Good morning, Dr. Brennan," Daisy chirped with a wide smile. "Dr. Saroyan sent me to find out if you were ready to go."

"Good morning," Brennan returned. "Yes, Daisy, we're ready to go." Brennan confirmed, stepping out of the room and striding toward the assembled group lingering around the lab. "Is Dr. Saroyan already on board?" she asked, not seeing Cam.

"No," said Daisy brightly. "She locked me out of our room and told me to come get her when everyone is ready to pull out of the parking lot but not to bother her before then."

"Then you should go get her now, Daisy," Booth urged, his voice rife with amusement. Brennan had shared Cam's little rant on the phone this morning with the rest of them and Booth was getting the definite impression that she hadn't enjoyed sharing a room with Daisy.

"Do I have to?" Daisy asked, biting her lip as if she were nervous about getting in trouble for questioning orders. "She's kind of grouchy this morning and you wouldn't believe how annoying it is to share a room with her," Daisy justified her refusal. Booth and Brennan shared an amused look.

"That's fine, Daisy. You go ahead and tell everyone we're ready to leave. Booth and I will take care of Cam." Daisy nodded happily, glad she didn't have to deal with Cam again. Feeling that she had been granted temporary power to boss the other's around, she headed off to do just that.

Just as Booth and Brennan realized they didn't know which room Cam was in, the door to the room beside theirs opened and a less than her usual immaculate self Cam stepped outside, carrying her overnight bag. She wasn't messy by any means, she just wasn't quite as polished as usual and despite the early hour, she was wearing sunglasses.

"Bad night, Cam?" Booth asked, not even trying to mask his amusement.

"Not at all, Booth," Cam snapped. "I had a lovely night. I'm hoping that yours was just as pleasant as mine." Not bothering to wait for an answer, Cam moved around Booth and Brennan and stalked toward the bus. Booth and Brennan followed her at a more leisurely pace.

"She appears to still be upset that Daisy is a snuggler," Brennan told Booth helpfully, not realizing they had reached the group until she heard the snickers break out around them. Booth smothered a laugh as Cam rounded on him and Brennan, lifting a warning brow at her confrontational stance.

Cam was tired and irritated and wanted to take it out on someone but it wasn't Brennan's fault they had ended up in the motel from Hell or that Daisy was the roommate from Hell. And it certainly wasn't her fault that Cam had spilled her irritation this morning, giving her the ammunition she had just used. She knew that Brennan hadn't said what she had to be mean or snarky, the anthropologist just didn't have it in her to get at you subtly. If she had something to say to you, it would be done bluntly and to your face. Plus, she had done much worse to Brennan so she would just consider the embarrassment she was currently feeling penance and let it go.

"I apologize for my abruptness, Dr. Brennan," Cam said with a sigh. "I'm simply in desperate need of caffeine."

"I think we could all use some coffee," Booth agreed.

"There's a coffee pot and coffee on the bus," interrupted Wendell. "I saw it when I was putting away supplies."

"Oh, thank God," Cam breathed, immediately heading toward the steps of the bus. She hadn't been kidding about the desperate need for coffee. "Wendell, come show me where it is," she ordered as she passed the intern.

"Cam, we need to get going," Booth protested, even though he could use a huge cup of java himself.

"It won't take long to make a pot of coffee, Booth, and, trust me, we'll all be better off if I get my caffeine fix," Cam assured him, not pausing in her quest for coffee.

"It will take us a few minutes to get everything loaded, anyway, Booth," Brennan told Booth. If she was going to be suffering Cam's company for the drive to their crime scene, she was willing to delay departure for a few minutes for an improved mood on the part of the pathologist.

"Okay," Booth agreed with amusement, easily reading Brennan's motives. "Okay, people, listen up because things have changed. The press has been alerted that something is going on so that makes it even more imperative that nobody talks to anyone other than the people in our group."

"You don't think one of us had anything to do with it, do you?" Daisy asked, appalled at the thought that Booth would think they would betray him or Brennan in that fashion. The other interns stiffened and began to look alarmed at that possibility.

"No, Daisy, I don't think any of you ratted us out to the press," Booth assured her and all of the interns relaxed slightly but turned concerned eyes in Brennan's direction to see if she agreed with Booth's assessment. They had all seen Booth pissed and had no desire to be on the receiving end of that anger but they really, really, really didn't want to piss Brennan off. She was mucho scary and downright mean when she was pissed and she literally held their lives in her hands so they were all about keeping her happy. Unfortunately, they couldn't tell if she shared Booth's opinion that they weren't the guilt parties or not.

Booth noticed he had lost the intern's attention and followed their concerned gazes to Brennan, instantly knowing what was on their minds. He didn't know if he should find it amusing or insulting that they were obviously more scared of her than him despite him carrying a gun so he went with amused. "Bones, tell them you don't think they leaked the story to the press," he urged his partner, barely able to keep from rolling his eyes.

Brennan blinked in surprise at the order, her eyes going assessingly to the interns. She hadn't even considered that possibility and she needed to give it some thought. She silently studied each one of them until they began to fidget then turned to Booth. "Of course I don't think one of my people contacted the press, Booth. They know better after they were asked to keep it quiet," she assured him calmly. The implication that they had damned well know better hung heavily in the air and Booth smothered a laugh as her gaze turned back to the interns and they nodded so eagerly that he wouldn't have been surprised if they gave themselves whiplash.

"Now that that's settled," Booth began again, "we already know that reporters are trying to get to the site. I need everyone to be on the lookout for anyone who doesn't belong there and report them immediately to myself, Jenkins or Hamilton. No one and I mean no one speaks to someone they don't immediately recognize as one of ours. Are we clear?" he asked, his voice flat and hard because he needed them to understand this was no joke. Three wide eyed interns nodded and Booth was pleased to see they now appeared to consider him as big of a threat as Brennan.

"I understand, too," Wendell said quietly from behind him. Booth swung around to find the young man holding several cups of coffee in Styrofoam cups. "There's no creamer or sugar but the coffee is ready," he continued, holding a cup out to Booth.

"Thanks, Wendell." Booth took the coffee and turned back to everyone else. He had sent Jenkins to check them all out of the motel, they were now fortified with coffee and they needed to get a move on. "Jenkins, you're driving the bus. Hamilton, Sweets and Angela, you're with me," he ordered. "The rest of you load up." He had already discussed how they were getting through the roadblock at the mudslide with Jenkins and the other agent knew to follow Booth's lead. Everyone, except Brennan, instantly moved to obey him and Booth grinned to himself. _Oh, yeah, he still had it_. _Brennan didn't count because she never hopped to it for anyone, not even him._ His eyes met hers and she grinned as if she knew exactly what he was thinking as she walked toward him.

"You really shouldn't try to intimidate my interns, Booth," she chided, stopping directly in front of him.

"Oh, yeah? Why's that?" he asked innocently.

"Because that's my job," she assured him solemnly and he threw back his head and roared with laughter.

"Just consider it me supporting you as my partner," he urged with a wink, resisting the urge to pull her into his arms and hug her tightly. Not that he cared about anyone knowing they were together, they just needed to maintain their professional status while at work.

Her head tilted to the side and he knew she was thinking about his words. "I accept you logic," she nodded and Booth was touched that she had given her permission for him to torment the interns.

"I'll see you when we get there, baby," he said softly, lifting his hand to brush against her cheek.

"I'll see you there," she echoed, reluctantly stepping away from his touch and climbing onto the bus. Booth watched her until she was out of sight then turned toward the SUV, not at all looking forward to the trip.

To his great surprise, it wasn't nearly as bad as he had expected. He gave Hamilton a list of phone calls to make and spent most of the next forty five minutes with his phone glued to his ear, informing his superiors of the complication of the press being aware of what was going on and trying to trace the source of the leak. He hadn't had any luck when they passed the first sign warning of the blocked road. Angela and Sweets had spent the drive quietly conversing in the backseat, not asking even the first question.

"Whoa," breathed Sweets, leaning forward and peering out the windshield as they approached the mudslide itself.

Booth agreed but his wording was more along the lines of "damn it to hell" as he noted both sides of the road were bumper to bumper with news vans interspersed with automobiles. Many, many people were lined up outside those vehicles and he counted at least three television cameras being dragged out and pointed in their direction. He wasn't happy with that but what really got to him was the other people, the ones with tear ravaged faces that he could see so clearly when they had to stop to allow the barricades to be moved so they could continue on. The ones who were holding up photos and missing posters of the children who had disappeared from here and shouting out questions, asking if the children had been found, their eyes begging for him to reassure them that their loved ones had been found alive and well. He knew they couldn't possibly believe that but his heart broke for them all they same. The best he could hope for was that he would be able to give them some kind of closure but that didn't mean he was going to enjoy breaking their hearts all over again.

Trying to ignore the families seeking answers went against everything Booth believed in but he focused his gaze straight ahead, grateful for the uniformed officers who had stepped from behind the barricade and kept anyone from approaching the SUV or the bus. He couldn't really ignore the multitude of flashbulbs going off as the press got as close as possible and snapped their pictures but he refused to give them a reaction.

"Oh my God," whispered Angela from the backseat and Booth could hear the distress in her voice.

"Ignore it, Angela," he said softly, his eyes meeting hers in the rearview mirror. "Look straight ahead and don't let them see that you're upset." She nodded but her eyes kept darting to the side and she looked more saddened by the second. Thankfully, the barricade was moved and they were able to proceed before the tears he could see in her eyes spilled over.

"Is it going to be like this when we get there?" she whispered, a tiny catch in her voice.

"No, Angela. We're leaving the roadblock in place and the reporters can't get through," Booth assured her hoping he was right.

"What about the families?" she queried, obviously more upset by the possibility of facing grieving families than nosy reporters but Booth couldn't lie to her.

"If we find what we expect to, we'll notify the families as soon as identification is made and they will be allowed in to base camp so we can question them," Booth admitted. Angela shuddered at the thought of facing all those heartbroken people. Yes, she had assisted with families in the lab but noting on a scale like this and she wasn't sure she could handle it. She was surprised when Sweets reached out and took her hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. Looking into his face, she could see that he was almost as upset by what they had just seen as she was. She squeezed his hand back and clung to it, hoping he was drawing at least a little comfort from the connection. She would much rather Hodgins be sitting beside her but it was very sweet of Sweets to even attempt to make her feel better and she appreciated it.

Forty minutes later, they pulled off of the road next to a clearing where a helicopter sat and a very subdued group disembarked from the SUV and the bus. Booth immediately went to Brennan. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

"I'm fine, Booth," she assured him but her eyes said "that was awful". "I know and I'm afraid it's going to get worse," his answered. She nodded and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. When she opened them, Dr. Temperence Brennan, forensic anthropologist was firmly in charge. "We need to get to the site," she said, her voice devoid of the emotion from just moments earlier. Booth knew that this was just her way of dealing with things, that she cared deeply about the victims she examined. She just had to distance herself from what was coming or it would eventually drive her nuts but he was always a little startled when this drastic change came over her.

"Your transport awaits," he joked, pointing toward the chopper where the interns were already loading equipment. "I need to have a few words with Breyer and make sure security is set up so I'll be here for a while. The chopper can only take four at a time so it will have to make a couple of trips." Booth's hand smoothed up and down her back as they walked toward the chopper.

"I don't need Sweets or Angela or even Cam right now so if you can use them here, that's fine with me," Brennan offered and Booth almost smiled at her willingness to share, not that he could really use them but it was sweet of her to offer.

"I doubt that Cam will be willing to be left behind and she might be some help in organizing things but I will keep Sweets and Angela out of your hair," he made a counteroffer. Brennan's head tilted to the side as she considered it.

"Deal," she agreed quickly. They reached the chopper and she stepped back out of the way so the interns could finish loading supplies, Booth standing to her side and slightly behind her. "I'll see you later," she said softly, turning only her head to look at him. To the casual observer, it simply looked like two colleagues having a conversation while waiting to board the chopper.

"Yeah, I'll see you later," he echoed, his hand slipping under the back of her shirt and softly caressing the silky skin of her lower back. "Your cell phone probably won't work up here but the agent's on site have radios so you can contact me if you need me before I get there." He reluctantly pulled his hand away from her skin and let it rest on the small of her back.

"I'll be fine, Booth," she reassured him. He knew that but it was his job to keep her safe and he took that job seriously. Seeing that the supplies were loaded, she slipped her hand behind her back and gripped Booth's giving it a tight squeeze which he immediately returned then turned it loose and stepped toward her students. "Wendell, I want you to stay here and supervise getting the rest of the equipment loaded. Coordinate with Cam to make sure nothing gets left behind." Wendell nodded. "Hodgins, I want you with me to help evaluate the scene. Daisy and Mr. Nigel Murray will accompany us. Mr. Fisher, please help Wendell with the rest of our things and we will see you there," she finished and stepped into the chopper, not even waiting to see if her orders were followed. But then again, she didn't have to, she knew they would be.

Booth stood back and watched her toss out orders. That they were instantly obeyed and never questioned just went to show how much respect these people held for her personally and professionally. Booth had never been so proud of her as he was in that instant. She was a real force to be reckoned with and it humbled him that she had chosen him to build a life with. His gut told him this case was going to be a test to all of their endurances, emotional and physical but he didn't doubt for a second that they would get through it the way they always did. Together, leaning on each other for comfort and support when the going got tough. Holding her eyes, he raised a hand in farewell and stepped back as the pilot got in and fired up the chopper. She waved back and Booth turned around and strode toward the million and one problems awaiting him. It was time to catch some bad guys and make them pay.


	33. Chapter 33

**It's me again, guys. Musie has been in a strange mood the last couple of days and you got a little bit of everything in this chapter, hence its length. Hope you don't mind. Please remember our deal, I give you chapters and you give me reviews. LOL. Thank, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Brennan stepped off the helicopter before the rotors stopped turning and walked toward the man standing beside an ATV with some kind of trailer hooked up behind it. Judging from the man's uniform, she would guess that he was with the forestry service instead of the FBI and that the conveyance was meant to transport their supplies. She was grateful for that since the pilot had informed them they were still at least a mile from the site but this was the nearest clearing large enough to land the chopper. She and her team could have walked the supplies in but they would have had to make several trips and it would be physically exhausting as well as time consuming over the rough terrain.

"Dr. Brennan, I presume," the tall, blonde thirtyish man with twinkling blue eyes gave her a bright, appreciate smile after his eyes swept over her. Brennan didn't even notice but Hodgins stiffened at her side, ready to step in if the guy looked at her like that again, absolutely certain that Booth wouldn't like it.

"Yes, I'm Dr. Brennan. And you are?" Brennan asked calmly and the man was a bit taken aback that she didn't smile back at him. _Clearly his boyish charm was generally well received, _thought Hodgins snidely, _but the guy was in for a rude awakening with Brennan. Or Booth, when he found out the guy had tried to hit on her before he even introduced himself. Yeah, _he thought_, the guy deserved to have Booth turned loose on him. _

"I'm Steven Taylor. I'm a ranger with the forestry service," he smiled again and held out his hand. Brennan shook it briefly but still didn't smile at him, Hodgins noted in satisfaction. "I'm very pleased to meet you, Dr. Brennan. I've read all your books and enjoyed them immensely," he gushed and Hodgins rolled his eyes.

"I understand that we're still approximately a mile from the burial site?" Brennan queried, ignoring his flirting. Actually, she just didn't notice it in the first place but Hodgins stepped protectively closer and gave the ranger the back off, buddy evil eye.

"Umm, yeah, about that," Steven stammered, not used to women completely ignoring his interest in them.

"Am I to assume this conveyance is to transport our supplies to the site?" she asked.

"Yes," Steven decided it might be good for his health to mirror her all business attitude. He didn't much like the way the blonde man standing so close to Dr. Brennan was looking at him.

"Good," she nodded, turning and striding toward the helicopter to help transfer the supplies. After giving Mr. Blonde Forest Ranger a good glare, Hodgins followed her. By the time Steven realized he had been dismissed by the good doctor, they had already dumped one load on the trailer and were on the way with the second. Steven's eyes narrowed as he strode forth to help. Dr. Temperence Brennan was certainly an attractive piece of eye candy and he had always enjoyed a challenge. They would all be here for a while and you just never knew what could happen when people got thrown together in an emotionally charged situation.

Less than 10 minutes later, all the supplies had been transferred and the pilot was waiting for them to leave the clearing to start the rotors spinning. Steven climbed onto the ATV and started it up. "I have room for a passenger," he invited, patting the seat behind him and looking directly at Brennan who was busy shouldering on her backpack and didn't notice.

"No, thanks," grinned Hodgins, "the walk will do us good." He made a shooing motion with his hands and Steven stiffened, sure that he was being warned off. But, in his estimation, Dr. Brennan didn't treat the blonde guy any differently than she did the other two so he wasn't about to just give it up.

"Are you sure you can find it?" he asked Hodgins snidely and Brennan's head snapped up at the tone.

"Mr. Taylor, I can assure you that the four of us," she waved a hand to indicate her group, "have exceptionally high IQ's and we are more than capable of following the trail already apparent from your trip from the site to here," she told him with icy disdain. Steven swallowed hard, aware he had just made a big blunder. Deciding a quick retreat was in order, he gave the group his most charming smile and tuned the ATV back toward the burial site.

"What a jerk," murmured Daisy.

"Yeah," agreed Hodgins cheerfully.

Vincent was keeping his own counsel but he figured it would take Booth less than five minutes to knock the guy's teeth down his throat when he saw the way the other man was looking at Dr. Brennan. Which was fine with him because he agreed with Daisy, the guy was a jerk.

Brennan had found the man unpleasant but, as it was doubtful they would have much contact with him, she dismissed him from her mind as they set out, her thoughts centering on what they would find when they reached the site. Twenty minutes later, they entered the area that had been designated the crime scene and stopped dead in their tracks, four pairs of appalled eyes looking at the scene before them then at each other then back at the scene as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Brennan sure as hell couldn't believe what she was seeing. She actually had no words for how bad it was and considering her vocabulary, that was really saying something.

There were at least half a dozen men randomly wandering around her crime scene and judging from the trampled look of the ground, there wasn't an inch of the area that hadn't been repeatedly traversed by more than one pair of feet. The shelter that was supposed to protect the burial site from the weather was actually some type of canvas structure with only two sides that didn't even entirely reach the ground, offering no protection whatsoever. There were snack wrap papers and empty drink containers scattered all over the ground and a fire ring had been built no more than 15 feet from the grave site, a fire blazing cheerfully within its confines. All of that was horrible enough but what Brennan found utterly, reprehensibly unpardonable was the two men standing on what she could only guess were opposite sides of the grave actually poking into the ground with sticks. She found that so unbelievable that she actually closed her eyes then looked again to make sure she wasn't seeing things.

"Oh, my God," gasped Daisy, her hands flying to cover her mouth.

"Bloody bollocks," Vincent whispered, looking around in disbelief.

"FUBAR doesn't even begin to cover this," Hodgins agreed, his wide eyes falling on Brennan and holding there when he noted how rigid her body had become, her hands clenched into fists at her sides, her horrified gaze darting around the site. _She was about to blow and it wasn't going to be pretty_.

"EVERYONE STOP WHAT THEY ARE DOING THIS INSTANT!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, her voice echoing so loudly that even Hodgins who had been expecting it was startled. "Who is responsible for this.. this.. this _atrocity_?" she demanded when everyone stopped in their tracks and looked at her, the volume of her voice not reducing one decibel.

"Who's in charge?" Hodgins finally asked when no one answered. They all seemed to be afraid of Brennan and he really couldn't blame them since she was actually vibrating with rage that was going to need to find an outlet soon or she was going to explode. Someone called out the name Breyer but Hodgins didn't see who it was. He didn't envy Breyer in the least but he did at least expect him to be man enough to step forward and take what he had coming. Apparently, he wasn't because everyone stood around staring at them warily.

"Which one of you is Breyer?" Brennan demanded loudly, her eyes darting around the site but no one owned up to being the person she was going to verbally and, possibly physically, eviscerate as soon as she figured out who he was.

"He went down to meet with Agent Booth," one of the men finally answered her question, expecting her to calm down when she realized the man wasn't here. She didn't.

"Get. Him. Back. Here. Immediately." She hissed through clenched teeth and Hodgins was impressed at the volume she was able to obtain speaking like that.

"Now, ma'am, you need to calm down," the man who had answered her about Breyer began placatingly and started toward her. Brennan saw red. As if them irreparably contaminating her scene wasn't bad enough, she wasn't about to be treated like some hysterical female who needed soothing. She had every right to be pissed and this man had just chosen the wrong person to try those tactics on.

"Do. Not. Move." She hissed at him and he stopped in his tracks, not liking the glint of fury in her eyes. He had heard that Dr. Brennan was extremely high strung but he wasn't physically afraid of her. But he had also heard how protective Agent Booth was of his partner and he _was_ physically afraid of him so he decided to be on the safe side and follow her orders until Booth or Breyer was back onsite.

"Okay," he said, raising his hands in surrender.

"Who has a radio?" she snapped, eyeing them all like they were going to be in serious trouble if they moved so much as an inch. They must have believed her because they all stood still as statues, only raising a hand to point toward the jerk who had met them at the helicopter. She already knew her phone didn't get reception here because she had checked it just before they entered camp and the satellite phone was on the next load so she needed a freaking radio. "Keep an eye on them," she told Hodgins who was happy to oblige then stalked over to where Steven still sat astride the ATV. "Get Booth on the radio," she ordered, not caring in the least that she sounded like a drill sergeant.

"Sure thing," he gave her a smarmy smile that made her want to punch him in the nose so she stepped away to remove herself from temptation. Until she heard Booth's voice on the radio, then she leaned in and snatched it out of the jerk's hands so quickly he couldn't stop her.

"Booth, I need you up here immediately," she barked into the radio, desperately trying to control her anger. It didn't help that the jerk looked like he was surprised she was capable of operating the freaking radio without his assistance.

"Bones, is that you? Hold on, I can't hear you very well. Let me move." Seconds later he was back. "Bones, is that you? Are you all right?" he asked, the concern in his voice raising the eyebrows of everyone who heard him but Brennan was way past caring what these people thought of her.

"Yes, Booth, it's me and, no, I'm not okay," she hissed before realizing how he would take that.

"_Are you hurt?_" came roaring through the radio before she could correct herself.

"Calm down, Booth," she instinctively soothed. "I'm physically fine. No one's hurt," she assured him hoping he didn't pick up on the "yet" she muttered under her breath. "But we have a huge problem and I need you up here now."

"What is it?" he asked even as she heard him shouting for someone to stop the helicopter from taking off.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I could find the words to describe it. Trust me, this is something you need to see for yourself. And you should bring Breyer with you. I really would like to chat with him," Brennan couldn't stop her teeth from grinding together at that point but Booth didn't need the clue to tell him she was pissed. It did, however, tell him that her anger was aimed directly at Breyer. Logically, that meant something was very wrong at the dig site. _Just what he needed, another problem._

"I'm on my way, Bones," he assured her. "Don't kill anyone until I get there." He was joking but he knew how she was about her crime scenes and, although he was relatively certain she wouldn't actually kill someone for messing one up, he was glad she wasn't armed.

"Can I just beat someone up?" she asked seriously, eyeing the jerk who was rudely staring at her like he was a prime candidate.

"Only if they really, really deserve it," Booth laughed. "I'll see you in a few minutes," he promised before breaking off radio contact.

Maintaining possession of the radio, Brennan strode back over to her group, actually hoping someone would challenge her for the radio. She badly wanted to kick someone's ass and didn't particularly care whose it was. Unfortunately for her, the men seemed to sense that and kept their mouths shut, standing still as she had ordered. Brennan crossed her arms over her chest and studied the men more closely. Four of them were in uniforms similar to the one worn by the jerk so she had to assume they were with the forestry service which led her to the question of what the hell were they doing at the crime scene anyway? She could also safely assume the other two were FBI agents unless they had been recruiting people off of the streets to wander around and ruin her crime scene which was highly unlikely. Fighting the urge to simply order all of them away from the scene and permanently out of her sight because she wanted Booth to get the full impact of what they were dealing with, she turned to her companions.

"Vincent, I would like for you and Daisy to locate the equipment we'll need to set up a grid when we start digging," she said and they both immediately went down on their knees to start rummaging through the equipment. "Hodgins, we might as well take a look at how badly the grave is compromised while we wait on Booth," she continued and Hodgins nodded, falling into step behind her as she started toward the pathetic, so called shelter that had been erected.

"Hey, how come you two get to walk around and we have to stand still?" whined one of the men and Brennan spun around, her cold, blue, laser like gaze darting over each man but she couldn't tell who had spoken.

"No comments from the peanut gallery," Hodgins taunted, not caring if he was tormenting a man with a gun or not. He knew they wouldn't shoot him and he was confident that Brennan could and would kick anyone's ass who made a move toward him. He wouldn't have been safer with a gun or bodyguard of his own. Basically, he was untouchable and he liked the sense of power that gave him a little too much. Brennan shot him a chiding look but that didn't even penetrate his smugness so he just grinned back at her.

"Hodgins and I get to walk around because we know how to properly navigate a scene without contaminating it. A concept which all of you are obviously unfamiliar with," she snapped, eyeing each man coldly to let them know she wasn't going to forget how they had screwed her scene up anytime soon.

"Most of this mess was already here when we got here," one of the uniformed men protested. It didn't earn him any forgiveness points with any of the Jeffersonian team considering he was one of the men poking around in the grave for God only knew what reason.

"What the hell are you doing here in the first place?" Hodgins demanded, having reached the same conclusions as Brennan about the employment of the uniformed men. Because she wanted to know the answer to that question, Brennan held her silence with difficulty.

"We're helping with the road to get some bus in here. One of our machines broke down so we came up here to look around until it got fixed," he shrugged nonchalantly as if the fact that he was poking around in a mass grave with a freaking stick was of no consequence whatsoever. Brennan and Hodgins blinked at each other, absolutely certain they had just misunderstood the man's story. Sure they had to be missing something because it was absolutely unfathomable to them that the FBI would allow what amounted to the road crew on their crime scene, much less near the grave itself.

"You decided to contaminate my crime scene and potentially destroy evidence because you were _bored_?" she demanded incredulously, her voice shaking with the effort to control her rage.

"I wasn't bored so much as curious," the man with the stick allowed, with another shrug and a challenging glare at Brennan.

Brennan had never wanted to hurt someone so badly in her life. It was incomprehensible to her that anyone could be so blasé, so disrespectful, so inhumanly indifferent that there were probably children buried in the very ground he was so curious about. She couldn't be bothered with a response to the vile man's taunts because it took every ounce of her energy to hold herself back from simply reducing him to a pile of broken bones.

_Uh oh, they had just gone to Defcon 1 and the missiles were about to be launched,_ Hodgins realized with a feeling of inevitability, feeling the rage rolling off of Brennan. Just then, he heard the helicopter landing and grasped at the only thing that was going to be able to keep Brennan from totally annihilating the enemy. Not that he thought they deserved to be saved, but it would be very bad to further contaminate the scene with fresh blood. "Vincent, do you know how to ride one of those?" Hodgins asked the intern, nodding toward the ATV.

"Um, sure," shrugged Vincent.

Hodgins, afraid to take his eyes off of Brennan for more than a second, missed the doubtful look Vincent gave the machine. "Good. Take it and go meet Booth. Get him back here pronto."

"I'll do it," said Steven, stepping toward the ATV.

"No!" snapped Hodgins, not trusting the other man to understand the urgency of the situation. "Go, Vincent!"

Vincent didn't waste time with words. He had never seen Dr. Brennan so furious and he certainly didn't want to become the focus of that fury by failing in his assignment. Within seconds, he roared off into the woods, hoping he was fast enough to avert the disaster even he could see looming.

"Cut it out, Stan. Can't you see that you're upsetting her?" snapped the agent who hadn't spoken yet. Taking his courage in his hands, he walked the few feet separating him from Brennan. "Dr. Brennan, I know this looks bad but all of this," he pointed to the garbage on the ground, "was left by the people who first found the grave. It really was like this when we got here and we didn't want to disturb anything when we found out your team was coming. Your reputation precedes you," he said with a glint of humor in his green eyes.

Brennan was not amused. She folded her arms over her chest and turned icy eyes in his direction. As far as she was concerned, there was no acceptable explanation for what she was seeing and she was no longer interested in hearing excuses. She simply wanted these people off of her scene and out of her sight. She could only pray that they hadn't completely destroyed all the evidence with their obvious ineptitude but she wasn't holding out much hope and that saddened her immeasurably. The thought of child killers going free because of someone's ignorance and incompetence had her anger rising again and that was bad because she wasn't sure how much longer she could control it.

Her head snapped around when she heard the ATV roaring back into the clearing and she had never been so glad to see anyone in her life as she was to see Booth climb off of it. She didn't want or need him to rescue her but his very presence might calm her down enough to keep her from doing something she would later regret. Then her eyes focused on the man with him, no doubt the infamous Breyer, and she suddenly knew she wouldn't ever regret slugging him. Eyes narrowed, hands clenched into fists at her sides, she stalked toward the agent who was eying her nervously and backing up at her approach.

"Are you responsible for this?" she demanded, waving her hand around, her eyes blazing with unmistakable anger. Booth quickly looked around, disgusted with the state of the scene but he didn't really have time to process it right now. Brennan was approaching Breyer with murder in her eye and while he didn't blame her, he had to stop her. Breyer had only been starting to give him a report on the real condition of the scene when Brennan had radioed, finishing it on the chopper ride up. But still, Booth hadn't really expected it to be this bad and he could fully understand why Brennan was upset. In fact, he was a little surprised that she hadn't laid someone out.

"Bones," Booth said softly, smoothly stepping between her and Breyer and catching her arm, "it going to be okay," he soothed, wincing when Brennan looked at him incredulously. _Okay, bad choice of words._

"I told you it was bad," Breyer told Booth, drawing Brennan's attention back to him and her temper snapped.

"Bad? You call this bad? This isn't bad. Bad is when someone mislabels a sample. Bad is when a piece of evidence gets misplaced_. This_ is a horrifying example of unqualified incompetence on a level that I wasn't even aware existed. _This _is an utter lack of respect for the dead and an obvious disinterest in finding their killers. _THIS IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE_!" she yelled the last words directly into Breyer's red face. "I want them out of here," she said more quietly turning to Booth, her voice still shaking with temper.

"Hey," Booth said quietly, stepping closer, his hand going to her back and rubbing soothing circles, "just take some deep breaths and calm down. We'll figure this out."

"Go, Dr. B.," muttered Hodgins who ignored the reproachful look Booth sent his way. He agreed with everything Brennan had just said 150% and it had needed to be said. "A little warning might have been nice, Gman," Hodgins informed Booth, not at all pleased with the agent at the moment.

"Enough, Hodgins," Booth snapped, in full agreement with the bug man's opinion. It would have been much, much better for them to have had an accurate idea of what they were really walking into and he should have been here in his usual capacity of go between. If he had been, it would still have been bad but the situation wouldn't have gotten this volatile.

"Yeah, you go girl," added Daisy, wanting Brennan to know she had her support, she shot Booth a defiant look. If it was going to be the squints against the others, she didn't have a bit of trouble choosing her side. She was just surprised that Booth appeared to be aligning himself with the others instead of them but that was his choice to make.

Booth shot Daisy a glare and was surprised when she levelly returned the look. Glancing in Hodgins' direction when he stepped over to stand beside Daisy, he could see that battle lines were clearly being drawn. Stifling a sigh of frustration, he went into damage control mode. "Look, guys, this isn't a competition. We're all here to accomplish the same thing so we need to work together."

"The FBI is officially in charge here. We're required to have agents on site at all times," Breyer informed them condescendingly and Booth fought the urge to punch the idiot for making a bad situation worse.

"Zip it, Breyer. You're not helping," Booth snarled at the young agent.

"No," said Brennan flatly, meeting Booth's eyes squarely. She hated to put him in the middle but there was no way she and her team were working this site with these morons in charge. "I'm sorry," her eyes said.

"No, what?" Booth asked cautiously, almost sure he knew but hoping he was wrong. "Tell me what the problem is," his eyes insisted.

"What's going on?" Cam asked breathlessly, inserting herself into the silent conversation going on between Booth and Brennan. After Vincent had roared up insisting that Booth needed to get to Dr. Brennan immediately, she had been terrified at what she would find so she had really hustled to get here, easily outdistancing the others. But all she could see was Booth and Brennan facing off about something. No real surprise there so she looked around curiously. "Oh, my God," she gasped when the condition of the scene registered and she immediately knew what the problem was. They were completely screwed before they even got started.

"Yeah, I know," Hodgins sympathized with Cam's shock. His arms folded across his chest, he spared her a brief glance before he turned his frosty, blue gaze back on the human statues who still weren't moving. Brennan hadn't relieved him of the duty of keeping an eye on them and he didn't want to let her down.

"You probably shouldn't use the word bad to describe it," Daisy advised, edging closer to Cam and attempting to whisper. "Dr. Brennan doesn't like it."

"Thank you, Daisy. I'll keep that in mind," Cam replied, having no idea what Daisy was talking about.

Booth felt his lips twitch at the intern's comment and he could see the glint of amusement in Brennan's eyes, could literally feel the tension melting away from her body. "Are you okay, now?" he asked quietly.

"I'm fine, Booth, but I have to tell you that my team won't be working this scene with your crack team of agents in charge," Booth couldn't keep from grinning at her correct use of an idiom and the perfect amount of scathing sarcasm in her voice was impressive, too.

"Want to tell me why?" he queried with a grin, shooting Breyer a look that told him to keep his mouth shut as the man took a step forward, looking insulted. Unfortunately, he was apparently stupid and didn't heed the warning.

"You don't have a choice. The FBI is in charge here," Breyer told Brennan belligerently. From the triumphant look he received, Booth could only surmise that the idiot was expecting Booth to back him up but he couldn't have been more wrong. It was time to show them all where his allegiances lay.

"I've got this," Booth said quietly to Brennan before she could verbally flog Breyer and she nodded, understanding that the man was challenging Booth's authority even more than her own. "She does have a choice, Breyer," Booth informed the shocked Breyer, raising his voice to make sure that every agent heard every word. "This is Dr. Temperence Brennan and she is the best, most respected forensic anthropologist in the world. She and her entire team are absolutely the best at what they do. They can take even the mess that you've got here and bring killers to justice and they're all doing us a huge favor just by being here. _If_ she chooses to reconsider working this scene, she and her team _will _be treated with courtesy and respect and her orders _will_ be followed. Are we clear?" Booth's eyes met the two frozen agents' and they immediately nodded. Then he turned back to Breyer.

"Fine," snapped Breyer, glaring at Brennan. He was obviously embarrassed by the public dressing down he had just received and was blaming her instead of placing the blame where it really lay, squarely on his own shoulders.

"Not fine, Breyer, but we'll discuss it later," Booth disagreed. He'd worked with enough people like Breyer to know the agent would be no help in the coming days, he would only cause problems if he was allowed to stay. It was time for Breyer to head back to his office. Fortunately for him, Booth had the juice to make that happen since he was the Special Agent in Charge of this entire train wreck_. Lucky him_. "Let's talk," Booth said, pulling Brennan away from the group and into the woods.

Cam's eyes followed Booth and Brennan assessingly until they were out of sight but she didn't see anything to really give her a clue whether they were together or not. In her supervisory capacity, she knew she really should step in and insist on having some input into the decision making process. She also knew it wouldn't do her a bit of good. The bottom line was that if Brennan didn't work the case, none of them would and Booth had a much better chance of changing her mind than Cam. It was best if she just stayed out of it. Turning back, her eyes wandered over the site once again. "What are they all doing?" Cam asked, looking at the frozen men curiously.

"Dr. Brennan told them not to move," Daisy chirped helpfully.

"So they all just did what she said?" Cam was impressed.

"She was extremely pissed at the time," Hodgins clarified.

"And kind of scary," Daisy admitted.

"Ah," Cam nodded her understanding.

"Hi, guys," Angela sang out as she and the rest of their team strolled into the clearing. The interns stopped and looked around in horror, knowing how difficult it would be to find usable evidence in the mess spread before them. Angela thought it looked like party central for a bunch of teenagers but she much preferred snack wrappers and soda cans to blood and guts so she was cool with it. Besides, she was much more interested in the living sculptures than the garbage. "Are we playing a game?" she asked in amusement.

"Yeah and it's called Brennan says," snickered Hodgins. Daisy giggled and even Cam gave a startled laugh.

"We can hear you, you know," said one of the frozen agents but he was looking more amused than angry by the whole situation.

"Oh, for God's sake, you look ridiculous," snapped Breyer. "You can move now." None of the men moved an inch.

"You don't get to do that," Hodgins smirked at Breyer, "your name's not Brennan."

"Where is Bren?" Angela asked, glancing around curiously.

"Booth dragged her off into the woods," Cam said absently, taking another look at the agent who had been staring at her for the last five minutes. _Not bad_, she acknowledged. Late thirties to early forties, tall, broad shoulders, dark hair, green eyes, strong, masculine features. _Not bad at all_. She didn't consider it acceptable conduct to flirt with someone she hadn't even been introduced to in the present circumstances but the next time she caught him staring, she didn't look away either.

Angela couldn't really get excited about Booth dragging Brennan off into the woods. Even if they had been involved as they were trying to convince everyone they were, they were two of the most dedicated, professional people she had ever known and they would never wander into the woods for a booty call in this situation. She did catch the way one of the statues and Cam were eying each other and her smile widened. _Well, well, well, maybe at least one of them would come out of these woods with something more enjoyable than human remains._ Angela loved her work most of the time but every once in a while, she really struggled with what she saw day in and day out at the lab and she had the feeling this was going to turn out to be one of those times. Maybe, just maybe, watching a romance bloom would take her mind off the looming horror of the next few days.

Booth led Brennan into the forest until a modicum of privacy had been achieved then pulled her down to sit beside him on a huge boulder, retaining his hold on her hand and linking their fingers. "How bad is it?" he asked quietly and she didn't have to ask for clarification.

"I don't know for certain, Booth," Brennan wanted to be able to reassure him but, given what they were currently looking at, she had to be realistic. "On the surface, it appears that every inch of the scene has been contaminated. If any evidence of a crime survived, which is unlikely, it will take weeks to sift through all the garbage. The grave itself has been exposed to the weather for three years. Depending on the depth of the burials and numerous other factors, the likelihood of finding anything but skeletonized remains is very slim. In addition, the recent levels of rainfall could have washed away evidence if the water table actually rose but I won't know any of this until I get in there."

"And are you going to get in there?" he asked with a grin, tugging playfully on her ponytail, already knowing the answer.

"You know I will," she sighed, dropping her head onto his shoulder. She couldn't deny him but more than that, she couldn't deny those families she had seen on the way in the chance of finding out what had happened to their loved ones and she certainly couldn't deny the dead the opportunity for justice. "But I won't have those men there when we do," she insisted, her voice brooking no resistance, her head popping back up so she could look him in the eye to show him that she was serious about this.

Booth raised a brow, surprised at her vehemence. If anything, Brennan was reasonable and usually willing to discuss things, she rarely took such a pugnacious approach to anything and usually had a good reason for doing so when she did.

"They were digging around a mass grave of children with sticks, Booth," she told him, her horror apparent in her voice. Booth closed his eyes and shook his head. Considering his number of years on the job, he would have thought nothing about human behavior could still surprise him but that one did. Surprised and seriously disgusted him.

"Consider them gone," he assured her, his hand smoothing over her cheek.

"What about the agents?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

"What about them?" he asked, his thumb brushing her lip away from her teeth, not wanting her to injure it.

"Booth, they were just standing around while those other men poked around in the grave," she compromised, giving him what she considered relevant information showing lack of professionalism and a serious lack of judgment instead of demanding he remove them from the scene. She knew that Booth had a lot of extra responsibility on this case and she didn't want to make things any more difficult than necessary for him. She simply wanted her team to be able to adequately do their jobs and they couldn't do that if she had to watch the FBI agents like a hawk because she didn't trust them.

"Unbelievable," Booth sadly shook his head, wondering what the hell they had been thinking and knowing he would be asking them exactly that. If he didn't like their answers, they would be accompanying Breyer off the mountain. "I'll talk to them," he promised and that was enough for her. She trusted him implicitly.

"Deal," she agreed, standing up. In the next second, she found herself sprawled in his lap. He grinned down at her, his arms coming around her to hug her tightly. Her arms slipped around his waist and she hugged him back, snuggling against his chest. They sat that way for a long moment, simply drawing strength from being so close together.

"Ready to get to work?" he asked, tipping her chin up and dropping a light kiss on her lips.

"Yes," she nodded, reluctantly releasing him and standing up, knowing that the next few days were going to be extremely difficult for everyone involved. Even someone as accustomed to dealing with death as she was couldn't really distance themselves from a case like this. "Come on, partner, let's go to work," she urged, holding out a hand which he took without hesitation, pulling himself off the boulder and they slowly started back toward the crime scene, their joined hands swinging between them.

"I won't be here until at least after lunch because I have to deal with the reporter situation so I'll have to leave a couple of the agents on site," Booth said slowly. Brennan's eyes narrowed and he could tell she didn't like hearing that but, somewhat to his surprise, she didn't make a fuss.

"Fine, but they have to stay away from the dig site," she bargained. "And it can't be Breyer," she added quickly.

"Done," he agreed, his lips twitching at her not wanting Breyer around. She didn't trust her ability to read other people but she was getting much better at it. Good enough to know Breyer would be pain in the ass just to get back at her.

"When will the lab be available?"

"Hopefully late this afternoon but there's no guarantee. That's another thing I need to check into." Brennan's head tilted in question at his tone and he was amazed at how well she had come to know him over the last six months. "It seems that every single piece of equipment they're using to make the road in has broken down in the last 24 hours and that just seems a bit coincidental to me."

"There's no such thing as a coincidence," she parroted the phrase he had taught her, one she had come to believe. "You think someone is trying to stop us from getting the lab in here?"

"I think it's a definite possibility and much more likely than simple bad maintenance," he replied, as always, impressed at how quickly her mind processed information and came to the correct conclusion.

"But why would they do that? Not having the lab nearby won't stop us from excavating the remains. It will simply mean transporting them to another location for the identification process," Brennan mused aloud because she just couldn't see the logic behind making the lab less accessible.

"I know that and you know that but maybe whoever's doing it doesn't know that."

"I don't know what that means," she finally admitted, blinking up at him.

Laughing, Booth used his hold on her hand to pull her to a stop and into his arms. "It means," he said as his arms closed around her and his forehead drifted down to touch hers, "that I want you to all be careful. Stay together at the site. No one, and I mean no one," he stressed, his look telling her he meant her specifically, "leaves the site alone. If someone has to leave, use the buddy system."

"You think the killer is here and is going to try to hurt us?" Brennan hypothesized.

"I don't know," he admitted, both hands coming up to cup her face and tilt it upward. "I do know that my gut tells me something is up with all this equipment failure. I do know that the kind of scum who would hurt children wouldn't hesitate to hurt someone else to keep from getting caught. I do know that I love you with all my heart and soul and that I wouldn't survive it if something happened to you so I need you to not be your usual rush in where angels fear to tread self and, just this once, follow orders. For me," he added when he saw her eyes narrow at the follow orders part.

"Yes, sir," she said smartly, her eyes softening and glinting with humor. "I'm yours to command, sir," she teased with a grin.

"Umm, I like the sound of that. Say it again," Booth urged, his lips rubbing lightly against hers.

"I'm yours to com…ummmm." Booth's lips nudged hers further apart and cut off her words, swallowing her moan as her arms slid around his waist and pulled him closer.

His tongue flicked out to trace the inside of her lower lip then slid into her mouth to rub against hers. Moaning, she strained toward him, her nails digging into his back and her tongue sliding along his. Growling low in his throat, one of Booth's hands left her face and slowly slid down her back to settle on the upper curve of her buttocks to pull her against his hardening length. Brennan whimpered as her breasts tightened, her nipples hardening as they rubbed against his hard chest, her belly clenching with the need for closer contact.

Groaning, Booth's hand tightened on her hip, rocking her against his aching erection. He knew this wasn't the time or place to be doing this but, God, he wanted to drag her more deeply into the woods, strip her naked and bury himself inside her more than he wanted to draw his next breath. He needed to stop this and he would. _In just a minute_, he promised himself as both hands pulled the hem of her tank top out of her pants and slid underneath to trace up the soft, silky skin of her sides until his thumbs could feather over her pointed nipples.

Gasping into his avid mouth, Brennan's back arched, pushing her breasts toward his waiting hands, needing his touch to relieve their ache. Her center flooded with moisture, pulsing with an aching need to be filled. Not remembering and certainly not caring where they were, her hands worked under his shirt and into the back of his jeans, her nails digging into the upper curve of his butt as she ground herself against him.

_Stop!_ Booth's brain screamed even as he backed her against a tree and lifted her left leg to rest on his hip, his erection nestling into the v of her open thighs. Shuddering, his hips rocked against her, his fingers flicking open the front clasp of her bra, his hands filling with firm, warm mounds of flesh, his mouth voraciously eating at hers.

The sound of a helicopter overhead penetrated his lust addled brain just as Booth's hands reached for the fastenings of her jeans and he was suddenly recalled to their surroundings. Ripping his mouth from hers before he completely lost the ability to do so, he buried his face in her neck, his breathing labored as he tried to get himself under control. Not understanding why Booth had stopped kissing her, Brennan whimpered, her mouth blindly searching for his. When she couldn't find it, she settled for his ear, her teeth nipping at the lobe, her tongue flicking out to swirl around the sensitive flesh.

"Stop," Booth moaned as her teeth closed on his neck, his entire body clenching as her hands moved lower, firmly gripping his butt and dragging him against her. "Please stop, baby," he begged as her lips and teeth moved leisurely down his neck. He knew he wasn't getting through to her when her mouth continued its journey and her hands went to his belt buckle. One big hand covered both of hers and held them still, pressing them against his straining hard on. Moaning at the contact, he raised his head and used his other hand to gently grip her chin and force her mouth away from his flesh, tipping it up toward him. Long, dark eyelashes fluttered open and he almost got lost in slumberous, smoky blue eyes. _God, she was gorgeous_. She always was but he thought she was at her most beautiful when she was all mussed and tousled from their lovemaking, her lips red and swollen from his kisses, her eyes sleepy and glazed with desire.

"Wow, I guess you really do like it when I call you sir," she said after blinking at him for several seconds and Booth was startled into laughter. She was a constant surprise.

"Yeah, I guess I really do," he agreed, resting his forehead against hers, still chuckling softly. "But do me a favor and wait until we're alone and unlikely to be interrupted before you do it again," he urged.

"Okay, but that might be a few days," she warned morosely, resigning herself to the fact that her aching body wasn't going to be getting relief any time soon.

"I know," he answered just as morosely, pulling away from her and watching with hot, very interested eyes while she put her clothing to rights. "But at least we'll be doing something worthwhile in the meantime. I guess that's some comfort," he mused, slipping an arm around her shoulders and leading her toward the site.

"Not so much," Brennan returned honestly and Booth laughed again. She really was getting modern terminology down pat.

They walked out of the tree line to the sound of laughter and both of their mouths curled in response. It was good to hear their friends having fun. Curious about what exactly was so funny, they moved closer to the squints who were spread out in a line facing away from them.

"Brennan says hop around on one leg and croak like a frog," Angela called out, lifting her right leg and grasping her ankle with her hand, hopping around on her left leg to demonstrate.

"What are they doing?" asked Brennan.

"I have no idea," Booth responded drily.

"Oh, come on, guys," Hodgins grumbled, "surely you don't need me to explain the rules to you again. But I will," he added cheerfully. "When one of us," his finger waved to encompass the squints, "prefaces whatever we tell you to do with Brennan says, then you," he waved the same finger to indicate the human statues, "have to do it. Got it now? These guys are no fun," he complained with a sigh when no one answered him.

"Some of these guys have guns, Hodgins," Booth warned, trying to keep from laughing at the fact that the men didn't appear to have moved an inch the entire time they had been gone.

"They won't shoot me," Hodgins grinned confidently.

"Why's that?" asked Booth.

"Because they're afraid to move until Brennan tells them to," Hodgins snickered and Booth rolled his eyes.

"Enough, Hodgins. Stop tormenting my men before I have to arrest you," Booth growled without any real heat.

"What for?" challenged Hodgins, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

"I'll think of something," Booth assured him.

"Hodgins, did the rest of the equipment get unloaded from the helicopter," interrupted Brennan and everyone immediately went into professional mode.

"I sent Wendell and Fisher to get the rest of the supplies," Cam answered, "they should be getting back any time now."

"Good. When they get back, we need to do a sweep with the ground penetrating radar to determine the dimensions of the grave before we set up the grid," Brennan rattled off before turning and heading for the supplies. Booth caught her arm and gently swung her around, looking at her with a raised brow.

"Can I have my men back now?" he asked drily.

"Certainly," she blinked at him when he just continued to look at her expectantly, unsure what it was he needed from her.

"I think he wants you to tell them they can go, Sweetie," Angela offered helpfully, pointing to the men Brennan had commanded to stand still earlier.

"Oh," Brennan turned her head toward the men, "you can go now." She waved her hand in a go away motion and they all immediately began to move away from her dig site. She grinned up at Booth. "Good enough?"

"Yeah, thanks," he grinned back, reluctantly releasing her arm. With a nod, she was off.

"Wow," breathed Daisy, staring after Brennan with awe, "I really, really want to be Dr. Brennan when I grow up."

Booth laughed, knowing what the young woman meant. "Sorry, Daisy, but you should just try to be yourself. I don't think the world's ready for another Temperence Brennan." Booth headed off to have a little chat with his men and get them sorted out.

_Maybe the world wasn't ready for two Dr. Brennans_, Daisy mused_, but she was certainly going to do her best to find out._


	34. Chapter 34

**Hey, guys, next chapter is done. Hope you like it. Remember reviews are love and Musie really likes them. LOL.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

By 3PM that afternoon, Booth was exhausted and he had yet to make it back to the dig site. He had spent the last seven hours trying to accomplish ten things at once but every time he managed to solve one problem, two more immediately cropped up and he knew he couldn't keep up this killing pace. This case was already seriously compromised and he couldn't afford to let anything else fall through the cracks. So as head honcho, he was going to have to choose a second in command and delegate the more mundane duties to free himself up to take care of the important stuff. Leaning back against the SUV with his arms crossed over his chest, he critically surveyed the pool of potential candidates for this position and had to admit that he was underwhelmed.

In all, there were seven federal agents on site, including himself and the two who had accompanied them from DC. He had worked with Hamilton and Jenkins before and knew them to be competent, trustworthy agents so he had left them at the dig site to keep an eye on the squint squad. And after speaking to the head of the road crew and examining some of the equipment malfunctions, he would continue to do so.

As far as he could tell, the first equipment malfunction had simply been that, a mechanical failure. But the subsequent problems had clearly been sloppy, ill-concealed acts of sabotage, confirming his suspicions that someone already onsite didn't want them to get the mobile lab into the dig site, probably thinking that would delay or halt the investigation. Untrue and shortsighted on the part of the saboteur but the fact that someone had gone to the effort made Booth very, very nervous. The only reason he could think of for someone to try to stop them was that person was a part of whatever had happened up here three years ago and that was not good. He had to assume that when the inside man saw that his efforts hadn't even slowed Brennan and her team down, they would step up their game. Sooner or later, whoever was doing this would realize the most logical way of stopping the investigation was to eliminate the people conducting it or destroy the evidence and that put the squint squad, in general, and his special squint, in particular, in danger. He didn't like the sound of that at all.

Every fiber of his being demanded he get his ass back to the dig site and not let Brennan out of his sight until they were ready to leave this place. But he knew he had a better chance of eliminating the danger by figuring out who the saboteur was and arresting them than simply waiting for them to make a move so he had Charlie running extensive background checks on everyone present, including the other agents, and he was, personally, briefly interviewing everyone who was a possibility. He had relayed all of this to Brennan a couple of hours ago via satellite phone. She had, predictably, snorted, told him they were all fine and he shouldn't worry about them. She had, also predictably, demanded he give her a gun just in case. It was a measure of his concern that he was actually considering her request. But even if she was armed, if he couldn't be there to watch Brennan's back, he most definitely wanted someone he could trust doing it, so that put Hamilton and Jenkins on permanent guard duty and took them out of the running for number one assistant.

His eyes moved on to the next candidate. Breyer. Well, that one was easy. No freaking way. Booth didn't like anything about the younger agent. He was arrogant, rude, drunk on the authority he had been granted on this assignment and enjoying throwing his weight around way too much. Booth had to wonder what the hell someone had been thinking to throw such an inexperienced agent headfirst into a situation like this just because he knew the area. Breyer had been kissing Booth's ass since their earlier run in, trying to smooth things over and get in his good graces. It hadn't worked but it had given Booth a little insight into the scared kid determined to succeed in his first real assignment who was hiding behind the power hungry monster this assignment had turned him into.

Breyer had known from the beginning that he was out of his depth but instead of admitting that and asking for help sooner, he had muddled through, screwing things up more with every decision he made. The weird thing was that Booth could clearly see how intelligent and dedicated Breyer was and he thought with a little humbling and guidance, Breyer would make a good agent and the bureau needed all of those it could get. So, instead of sending him back to his office in disgrace, he had chosen to keep him here and work on that humbling. Not because he didn't like him or even because he was still pissed at how the little pipsqueak had spoken to his woman but because it was up to his generation of agents to help the next generations maintain the high standards which were so important to him. To that end, Booth had stripped Breyer of his authority and basically assigned him as a gofer.

After making it clear that any disrespect toward the squints would result in him being banished, Booth had sent him to make sure base camp was ready for their arrival tonight and to get lunch for them. Booth had to give the younger agent points for hopping to those trivial but necessary tasks without complaint. Looking at Breyer through narrowed eyes, Booth thought Breyer was quickly learning his lesson, he sure as hell wasn't strutting around like he owned the place anymore but giving him any power right now would be asking for trouble, just like giving an alcoholic a full bottle of scotch.

Two of the other agents didn't even rate consideration. One of them, Agent Hardy, had only arrived from DC a couple of hours earlier and, even though he was technically an agent, he had recently made the move to the PR department and was currently acting in that capacity. After Booth had reported the presence of the media, the powers that be had decided to send someone in exclusively to deal with the press and Booth was glad for that. He had no desire to spend any of his time with those vultures. None of them appeared to have made it around the obstacle of the roadblock yet but according to Hardy, the number of press, victim's families and just gawking bystanders had increased dramatically since this morning and Booth wouldn't be a bit surprised to find one snooping around any time. Hell, several news stations had helicopters in the air, trying to see what was going on from that vantage point. Booth knew and liked Hardy and would have trusted him as his second in command but the other man had his hands full at the moment, just trying to put together a statement for the press without saying anything that would draw even more attention to them. Booth didn't think that was possible but he wished Hardy luck.

The other noncontender, Agent Penn, had been the genius in charge of securing the scene when Brennan and her team had arrived and had already screwed up so badly that no way would Booth put him in charge of anything. On top of that, he had then asked to speak to Booth privately, telling him that he had been away from the site on a bathroom break when the road crew had arrived, leaving the other agent in charge. He swore that when he had arrived back at the sight, he had been horrified by what he had seen and had been telling them to get away from the grave when Dr. Brennan and her team had arrived. They had only been a few feet away from the others during this little speech and the road crew, overhearing Penn's assertions that he wasn't at fault had immediately broken in, swearing to a man that Penn had been the only one present when they arrived. They also openly admitted that the other agent had come back and told them to get the hell away from the hole just as the loud, angry woman had arrived and started yelling. To Booth's surprise, the other agent never said a word in his own defense, just giving Penn a look of disgusted contempt which Booth could fully understand, he found Penn's actions nauseating. As thinly as they were already stretched and as much as he could use him, Booth wouldn't have someone who had shown such poor judgment and dishonesty on his team. Penn was out of here just as soon as transportation off of the mountain became available and Booth would most definitely be sending a written report on the man's activities to his superiors.

Dealing with the road crew hadn't been all that difficult because they had been shocked and revolted to hear they had been digging in a grave. According to them, they had simply been curious about what was in the big hole that was so important that the FBI was guarding it and had taken the opportunity to find out when Penn hadn't objected. By the time he had sent them on their way with a stern lecture about trespassing on a crime scene and assuring them they would be arrested if they came near it again, they had practically been on their knees begging forgiveness and promising never to keep their distance. Booth had believed them.

That brought him to the final contestant, Agent Spencer Van Buren, who had been a bit of a puzzle to Booth, at first. For starters, whereas Penn was angry and embarrassed at having been put in his place by Brennan and tormented by the squint squad, Van Buren was obviously amused and impressed at her ability to freeze grown men in their tracks as well as the antics of the squints. In fact, he seemed to find one squint particularly fascinating, casting frequent glances in Cam's direction. Booth hadn't even tried to guess if Cam was looking back because he wouldn't touch that one with a hundred foot pole. Van Buren was polite and respectful but in no way deferential, making no attempt to disguise his disgust with Breyer's brown nosing attitude and Penn's dishonesty. Booth liked that about him.

Van Buren was older and had more years with the bureau than the other agents, making Booth wonder why he hadn't been put in charge of the investigation. Booth already had a good sense of what kind of man Van Buren was and the information Charlie had sent him had told him everything else he needed to know about the other man. Van Buren was 42, single, had spent eight years in the marines followed by six years with the Richmond Police Department while getting his law degree at night. He had then applied and been accepted to the FBI where he had a reputation of being a tenacious defender of justice.

He had been a fast rising star within his own office when he had taken exception to one of his superiors harassing the female agents and nothing being done about it, despite numerous complaints. That superior had made the mistake of propositioning Van Buren's female partner at the office late one night, choosing to not take no for an answer. Van Buren had interrupted before the female agent was actually assaulted and had broken the guy's jaw. The deputy director had hastily resigned to avoid the scandal of being fired or prosecuted but had used his significant political pull to halt Van Buren's career in its tracks. Booth thought it said a lot about the man that he hadn't just given up and quit at essentially being benched, that he continued to work to put away the bad guys even knowing he probably would never advance very far within the bureau. Booth was comfortable with that kind of man watching his back. Pushing away from the SUV, he approached his new second in command to apprise him of his new status and duties.

Brennan leaned back on her haunches, wiped the sweat from her brow with a blue, jumper clad arm and tried to stretch the kink out of her lower back. Looking at her watch, she was surprised to see that it was 5pm she had been in that hunched over position for over five hours_. No wonder her back hurt_. It had already been a long, tiring day, especially after the restless night before, and they had barely gotten started.

It had taken them a while to define and mark the edges of the grave with the ground penetrating radar. While Wendell and Vincent had been operating the machines, Brennan had taken the opportunity to more closely examine the grave itself and her heart had sunk at what she had found. A large portion of its surface had been disturbed by digging implements and trampling feet, meaning that any evidence within the first few inches of dirt had most likely been eradicated. There were multiple holes extending down approximately two to three feet, meaning that the heavy rains of the last few days would have more easily penetrated and the chance of deeper evidence being washed away or severely compromised increased dramatically. Brennan could only hope that the gentle slope of the ground around the crime scene would have drained the rain away before it could have done too much damage but she doubted it. It would have been extremely helpful if they could have used the radar to verify the number of bodies and their positioning but the loose, muddy surface of the grave made that impossible so they had to go in blind. It was going to be a long, tedious process as they meticulously disinterred the remains in the hope of salvaging any evidence from the mess they had been handed.

Her eyes wandered over the area surrounding the grave where the regular FBI forensics team was busily photographing the scene and bagging and tagging the multitude of garbage spread out everywhere. The team had been ordered to not touch the scene until they got the go ahead from her and had been waiting at base camp for that to happen. She had appreciated the courtesy but as she had told Booth, her team didn't do garbage detail unless there was a corpse lying on top of it. Laughing, Booth had called in the other team and put them to work. It amused Brennan to see them working so industriously while diligently giving the area she and her team were working a wide berth as if they were afraid of such a large concentration of squints. Then she overheard a couple of them whispering about her reaction upon arriving at the scene and realized they were only scared of her. Well, she could live with that. In fact, she kind of liked it.

"You need to drink something, Dr. Brennan," Cam said quietly from behind her, holding a bottle of water over her shoulder.

"Thanks, Cam," Brennan reached up to take it with a sigh, not bothering to argue because she knew Cam was right. While they were blocked from the full effects of the sun by the trees surrounding them, it was hot as hell in the blue jumpsuits they had all donned to keep from getting filthy or contaminating the scene and they did need to be concerned about dehydration.

"You're welcome," Cam responded, moving on to the interns and handing out water to them.

Brennan's gaze swept across her interns and she felt a sense of pride that she hadn't expected. They had all done exceptionally well so far, efficiently removing that joke of a shelter that was just in their way, quickly helping her set up the grid, then settling in to their assigned positions. Not surprisingly, Daisy had claimed the spot closest to Brennan and had looked at the other interns as if she would fight to keep it. Luckily, no one had challenged her for it and they had settled in to dig. For the first hour, Brennan had watched them critically but was soon satisfied that they were competent, turning her attention to her own section. One tiny portion of the grave's surface hadn't been disturbed and they had been able to run the radar over it, getting just the shadow of bones in the image so Brennan had concentrated their efforts on this portion. It wasn't as ideal as having a full view of what lay beneath them but it was a place to start and they just had to take what they could get and work with it.

"Dr. B., we have a problem," Hodgins said breathlessly, skidding to a halt beside her.

"Lovely," Brennan muttered under her breath, startled when Daisy giggled from her position directly beside her. "What is it, Hodgins?" Brennan asked, looking up and shading her hands with her eyes.

"I kind of need to show you something to explain," he said quietly.

Laying her tools aside, Brennan rose and pulled off her gloves, putting her hands on her back and stretching out the cramped muscles. "Take a 15 minute break," she told the interns, realizing they had been hunching over just as long as she had. Not waiting to see if they followed orders because she knew they would, she strode over to the area Hodgins had claimed as his own. He had set it up so he could screen the soil as they removed it from the grave, scowling at them anytime one of them said the word dirt but no longer bothering to correct them. Brennan's stomach tightened with apprehension as she saw Cam, Hodgins and Angela gathered around his laptop having what appeared to be a serious discussion. _What else could go wrong?_ "What is it, Hodgins?" she asked quietly, not really wanting to know.

"I asked Hodgins to check the weather forecast," Cam said grimly. Brennan blinked and waited for more information because she didn't yet see the problem.

"Rain," supplied Hodgins quickly, "it's supposed to rain heavily for at least the next three days and, looking at the radar, I estimate we only have about 12 hours before it starts."

Brennan instantly assimilated the information and she wanted to scream in absolute frustration. There was no way they could even make a decent headway in twelve hours much less completely disinter the remains, not if they wanted to save any evidence whatsoever. Rubbing a hand over her forehead, she let her mind concentrate on a solution. It came quickly and it was pretty simple, since they couldn't control the weather, they had to cover the site. Looking back at Cam and Hodgins, she was a little disappointed that they hadn't already reached that conclusion.

"There's more," Hodgins said with hushed excitement. "I was curious about the saturation level of the soil, so I did a little digging. I found this about three feet down," he grinned, holding out his closed fist. Brennan automatically extended her hand and looked at the dirt Hodgins let sift from his hand to hers. It took her a second to get what he was trying to tell her and she used the fingers of her other hand to rub the dirt across her palm to verify her conclusion. Lifting sparkling, excited eyes to a laughing Hodgins, she began to grin.

"What?" demanded Angela, exchanging a confused look with Cam.

"It's dry, Ange, it's completely dry," Brennan whispered, her fingers still sifting through the soil in her hand.

"It's also comprised mostly of shale with a very low clay concentration," Hodgins added smugly.

Brennan's eyes widened and she laughed out loud, wanting to dance around with joy that something was finally going right. This was no guarantee the grave wasn't standing full of water but it was a good indication that the slope they were on drained water away from the area before it could penetrate the ground. Plus the composition of the soil would promote the quick draining of any water that had penetrated. There was a good chance her remains hadn't been compromised, even with the surface of the grave being disturbed. "We have to keep it that way," Brennan demanded and Hodgins nodded, knowing she meant keep the grave dry.

"They're predicting record amounts of rainfall over the next few days so a tent like structure won't really be all that helpful," he began. Brennan nodded, knowing from personal experience that canvas leaked and sagged, sometimes collapsing when bombarded with heavy rain. It would also be difficult for them to work around the center support these types of structures required. A tent certainly wasn't ideal but it was better than nothing. Fortunately, she had a feeling that Hodgins had a much better solution in mind.

"I'm listening," Brennan said. Angela looked on, feeling a little pang of envy at the easy rapport Brennan and Hodgins had in their little scientific world. Oh, she knew the two were only friends and colleagues and what she was feeling certainly wasn't jealousy. It was more that she was sad that she would never understand the scientist part of him like her best friend did without even trying.

"I think I have an acceptable alternative," Hodgins grinned and motioned toward his laptop. Brennan stepped closer, her interest immediately caught by the picture on the screen.

"What is it?" she asked quietly, her assessing gaze lingering on the huge domed structure that was made up of clear panels and shaped like an igloo.

"It's something one of my companies has been working on for the agricultural industry. Basically, it's the twenty first century version of a greenhouse. It's designed to be self sustaining but that's not why I thought of using it," Hodgins explained.

"Get to the point, Hodgins," Cam said impatiently, not at all phased by the disgruntled look he sent her way. "Don't give me that look, bug man," she warned, crossing her arms over her chest and giving him a level look. "Twelve hours, remember? You can tell us all about it later but right now you need to spill." Since you couldn't really argue with that kind of logic, Hodgins didn't even try.

"I wanted to use it because, for added support, the base extends approximately four feet underground," he grinned triumphantly, holding Brennan's eyes, "and…"

"If we can separate the dig site from the surrounding area that far down, it will be virtually impossible for any rain to seep through, regardless of the saturation level," Brennan finished for Hodgins as he crossed his arms over his chest and rocked back on his heels, looking extremely pleased with himself. _As he should_, acknowledged Brennan_, it was a brilliant idea_. "Hodgins, I could kiss you right about now," Brennan murmured absently, still studying the structure.

Angela and Cam's mouths dropped open in astonishment that Brennan had known that phrase much less used it correctly and on Hodgins of all people. Hodgins gave a startled laugh. "Then pucker up, baby," he encouraged holding out his arms, a teasing, playful light entering his eyes.

"Very, very bad idea, bug man," growled a voice from directly behind a surprised Hodgins just as a big hand fell heavily on his shoulder.

Hodgins turned his head to find himself looking at an unsympathetic, not even remotely amused face. "Sorry, Gman, I guess I got a little carried away in the moment," he shrugged sheepishly.

"Umm hmm," Booth murmured noncommittally, narrowed eyes studying Hodgins' face.

"Hey, man, Dr. B. started it," Hodgins defended himself.

Brennan turned at the sound of Booth's voice. "What?" she asked, blinking in confusion at the look on his face and the way he was gripping a wincing Hodgins' shoulder. "Is that not the correct phrase to indicate that I'm pleased with Hodgins creative reasoning skills?" she asked innocently and Booth had to smile and shake his head at her naiveté.

"Maybe," he admitted, "but how about next time you just go with way to go, Hodgins?" Booth suggested drily, finally removing his hand from Hodgins' shoulder. Hodgins looked relieved and rubbed his abused shoulder gingerly.

Angela and Cam stood by watching the exchange in silent amusement. Cam no longer had any doubt whatsoever that Booth and Brennan were together. Booth had always been possessive of the anthropologist but never quite like this. Angela wanted to tell Booth to just give it up already that everyone knew what he and Brennan were trying to do and no one was buying it but she did think this macho display of pretend, possessive jealousy was extremely hot.

"Okay," Brennan nodded obligingly, not sure what all the fuss was about. "How did you get here? I didn't hear the helicopter."

"That's because I didn't come on the helicopter. I came in the SUV, right behind the lab," Booth grinned triumphantly, a little disappointed when no one immediately got excited about him accomplishing the feat of getting the road finished. "Okay, what's going on?" he demanded, his eyes narrowing, his hands going to his hips.

"Rain and lots of it," Angela supplied morosely.

"And we only have about 12 hours before it gets here," Cam added.

Booth looked at Brennan and saw the concern on her face. He might not be a genius but he knew that rain would be very bad for Brennan and her team. Sidestepping Hodgins, he moved up beside her, reaching up to wipe a smudge of dirt from her cheek. "What do you need?" he asked simply and she smiled up at him, grateful that he knew her well enough to just offer the support she needed instead of asking a lot of unnecessary questions.

"Hodgins has offered us the use of a protective cover from one of his companies but it will need to be assembled," Brennan said, pointing toward the screen. Booth leaned in and took a closer look and his eyes widened.

"Bones, I hate to be a pessimist here but I don't think my guys will be able to figure out how to put something like that together in twelve days much less twelve hours," he offered hesitantly, hating to admit there was something he couldn't do for her.

"Not a problem," Hodgins assured him, "assembly comes with the deal."

"Are you sure they'll be able to deliver and construct it in the appropriate time frame, Hodgins?" Brennan asked, chewing on her lower lip. She trusted Hodgins but if there was the slightest possibility this plan wasn't feasible, they needed a backup plan.

"Trust me, Dr. B.," Hodgins urged with a gentle smile but he knew Brennan would be more comfortable with the situation if she had details so he gave them to her. "Technically, this isn't in production yet," he tapped the computer screen, "but they have several prototypes. If none of the prototypes are in that range and they can't manipulate the size enough by removing some of the panels, the manufacturing equipment is already in place and I have people standing by to cut it down if necessary."

"And they can still get it here and get it up in less than twelve hours?" Booth questioned doubtfully.

"It might be cutting it close if they have to cut it down but if that's the case, I'll just have them bring more people. I won't let you down, Dr. B.," he promised firmly.

"I know you won't, Hodgins," she acknowledged. "It would be logical to use one that didn't have to be altered considering the time frame," she mused aloud. "Do you have a list of dimensions?"

"Right here," Hodgins stepped up to her other side and pulled up another page on his laptop, he and Brennan leaning over to study it and converse quietly. Booth took the opportunity to look around and saw the FBI techs still had a long way to go before they were finished. He needed to let them know about the weather change headed their way on top of the hundred other things he needed to get done before his day ended. He was pulled out of his thoughts when Brennan straightened and bumped into him, his hand automatically going to her arm to steady her.

"This one should be adequate, Hodgins," she tapped a finger on the screen, her relief obvious.

"Okay, then, I just need to make a phone call," Hodgins nodded, reaching for the satellite phone laying on the table with his laptop.

"How's it going?" Booth asked Brennan quietly, jerking his head toward the interns.

"Slowly," Brennan sighed. "Booth, every inch of this area has been contaminated. It's going to take several days to excavate the grave, if we have any hope of salvaging any evidence and even then there are no guarantees. If we don't get that structure in place in time," she didn't finish the sentence. She didn't have to, Booth knew exactly what she was saying.

"Don't worry, Bones," he said, stepping closer and lowering his voice, "we'll get your igloo up for you," he promised. She smiled at him and opened her mouth to answer but never got the chance.

"_Dr. Brennan, we need you_!," Daisy yelled in a strangled, panicked voice. Brennan's head snapped around and she was instantly in motion, heading toward her interns, Booth hot on her heels. Hodgins, Cam and Angela right behind him.

"What is it, Daisy?" Brennan asked calmly but she didn't really need to ask. She just had to follow the horrified gazes of the silent interns to a spot in front of Daisy where four small phalanges were sticking straight up out of the dirt beside the adult femur they had already uncovered. Brennan looked at her interns, their shock and dismay written plainly on their faces and she knew exactly how they felt. As illogical as it was, expecting to find this and actually finding it were two entirely different things. Actually exhuming the remains of a child made it much more difficult to deal with than examining them in the clinical setting of the lab, somehow made it more real, harder to distance yourself from.

"What is it?" asked Angela quietly.

"It's a child's hand," Brennan said softly.

Angela gasped, her hand flying to her mouth and turned away. Yes, they had all expected to find this but she didn't want to see it. Cam looked on, wishing there was something she could do to help besides handing out water and sandwiches and trying to keep everything running smoothly. Hodgins' hands clenched into fists, there was little that made him angrier than someone hurting a child.

Booth could see the naked sorrow on Brennan's face as her eyes remained fixed on those tiny bones. He could also see that the interns hadn't expected their jobs to have this kind of emotional impact. His hand smoothed up and down her rigid back. "They need you, Bones," he said so softly that only she heard him. She nodded. "I'll finish up with Hodgins," he offered and she nodded again.

"I'll go make that call right now," Hodgins said, turning away.

"Hodgins," Brennan called and he turned back, "please tell them to hurry," she said grimly, her eyes still on the bones.

"I will," Hodgins promised, just as grimly.

"Someone needs to pay for this, Booth," she murmured, raising her head and meeting his eyes, the light of determination in hers.

"Someone _will_ pay for this, Bones. We'll make sure of that," he promised, his eyes boring into hers. She nodded, held his eyes for a long second, then dropped down beside Daisy to reassure her protégées and get on with their gruesome task.


	35. Chapter 35

**Hello and many thanks to all the reviewers for the previous chapters. I apologize for the disruption in my posting schedule. The next couple of weeks are going to be…interesting for me so I can't promise to return to posting with the regularity you have come to expect but I will try. Anyway, I promise a new chapter tomorrow. A nice long one so I hope this one will tide you over. Don't forget to review. Thanks, T.**

Four hours later, Brennan brushed the last bit of dirt away from a female child's clavicle and fought down the rage that had been building inside her with every stroke of her brush, every new bone she had revealed since she had rejoined her team of interns. Glancing up, she wasn't surprised to see the same rage reflected on each and every face. In fact, she considered it a good sign.

Since she had directed them to concentrate their efforts on the adult body while she worked on the remains Daisy had uncovered, they had all been ominously quiet. Mr. Nigel Murray, who had been spouting useless factoids all day, hadn't said a word. Even the seemingly irrepressible Daisy hadn't opened her mouth but Brennan saw how they kept glancing to the area she was working on and the open grief on their faces and she could empathize.

She well remembered how she had felt the first time she had helped excavate a mass grave of genocide victims, the rage, the sorrow, the sheer disillusionment with a humanity that could do that to one another. She had channeled all that rage into doing her job as best she could but she had struggled daily with the sorrow and disillusionment, until the last week of the dig. They had been closely examining the remains, and making detailed notes that they hoped would lead to identification because they didn't have medical or dental records. They didn't even have a list of names of the missing and Brennan had felt helpless and hopeless, as if what they were doing didn't really matter. It seemed that they were simply removing these forgotten people from one forgotten grave to send them to another, still nameless and faceless, mourned by no one. In the following days, she had found out how very wrong she was.

During that week, people from nearby villages had begun to show up, sneaking past the guards, clutching photos of their missing loved ones and begging for confirmation that they had been found, just wanting the waiting and not knowing to be over. And Brennan had begun to see the impact of her work on living individuals on a very personal level instead of the abstract, academic way she had always viewed it before. It had been heart wrenching to see those peoples' grief, their desperation to find answers and, at the same time, it had been one of the most fulfilling weeks of her life. Using only photographs and verbal descriptions of physical injuries, they had identified 27 of the 41 bodies they had recovered and, despite the circumstances, Brennan had felt a sense of accomplishment like never before, finding an unexpected peace in giving those people back their loved ones.

And that's what she wanted the interns to take away from this experience, that feeling of accomplishment, that drive to make a difference, not just the abject horror at what they were seeing. Every person here was appalled and sickened by their need to be here but, in her estimation, mad was better than sad for the interns. She knew her people were all very good at their jobs but this was their first really challenging situation outside the lab and it was easy to lose your focus when faced with something so emotionally taxing. None of them could afford for that to happen and she was hoping that anger would override the grief, help them focus, make them more diligent and determined, just as it did for her.

Not for the first time, she wished she was more like Booth, better able to read people but more importantly she wished she had his innate ability to say or do the right thing in any given situation. She wished she knew the right words of encouragement and guidance to offer these young people who were obviously struggling with the revulsion of what they were seeing. As if her thoughts had drawn him to her, Booth suddenly appeared, squatting by her side.

"Are you guys about ready to call it a night?" he asked quietly, his hand brushing strands of hair that had escaped her ponytail away from her face, noting the physical fatigue on her face as she looked up at him.

"Yes. We need to transfer these remains to the lab," she pointed to the skeleton of the adult male that had been almost entirely removed from the grave and placed on a stretcher for transport. "Then we'll be at a good stopping point," she finished tiredly, rolling her shoulders to get a kink out of the muscle.

"Good timing," Booth smiled, his hand moving to her nape and gently massaging the tense muscles of her neck. "Hodgins' crew just got here and it will take them at least that long to unload. I bet you guys will be glad to see a hot meal and a bed," he added to the too quiet interns, receiving only mumbles in return, none of them even bothering to look at him. Brennan gave a slight shake of her head to indicate they would talk about it later to Booth's raised brow, her blue eyes flicking over the interns to check their progress just as Wendell transferred the last bone from the grave to the stretcher.

"We're finished, Dr. Brennan," said a very subdued Daisy, the first words she has spoken in over four hours. Brennan would never have predicted that she would be glad to hear Daisy's voice but she actually was. Nodding, she rocked back on her heels in preparation of standing, issuing orders without pause.

"Wendell, would you and Mr. Nigel Murray please take the remains to the lab and bring back a tarp to cover the site?" Brennan didn't wait for an answer but turned to Daisy. "Daisy, you and Mr. Fisher gather the rest of the tools and return them to the lab," she instructed, "then we'll be ready to go," she finished, turning back to Booth, who stood and held out a hand. Gladly accepting the helping hand, she got to her feet and stretched out the cramped muscles in her back and legs, absently noting that all four interns were busily following her instructions.

Booth had been extremely busy this afternoon but he was never too busy to notice what Brennan was doing. When she was in the vicinity, it was just automatic for him to periodically check on her and he had noted the abnormal silence from all of the interns, most notably the chatterbox Daisy. Scanning the morose little group of interns, he saw the way they all appeared to be in their own little worlds, concentrating so hard on what they were doing that they were oblivious to their surroundings. It was something he had seen Brennan do a thousand times before but his gut told him it was more than that with this group. Taking a second, longer look, Booth saw the dejected droop of their shoulders, how stiffly they were holding themselves, how they were avoiding each other's eyes, their body language screaming how much they hated what they were doing. He knew then that they were concentrating so hard not out of professionalism but because that was the only way they could do what was being asked of them.

It wasn't surprising that the interns were freaked out, they were all horrified and upset over this situation. He knew that even Brennan, who outwardly projected a cool, calm professionalism was inwardly seething at the cruelty of this crime. Unfortunately, none of the interns had enough field experience under their belts to allow them to put it in perspective, to understand that while being emotionally devastating, what they were doing was a very good thing. It would help bring some small measure of comfort to the victims' loved ones and, hopefully, allow them to bring the perpetrator of this horrible crime to justice. Of course, they knew this from their work in the lab but knowing something intellectually and seeing the same thing on a personal level were two very different things.

It was obvious that someone needed to talk to the interns and Booth just didn't have the time. The next most obvious choice for that someone was Sweets. It would give the psychologist something to do besides wander around and annoy everyone, which had apparently been his mission today, but Booth would never suggest that to Sweets without discussing it with Brennan first. And, at the moment, he just didn't have the time to do even that. They were going to be cutting it close to get the shelter in place before the rain started and protecting that grave was the most important thing at the moment. He would talk to Brennan about the interns as soon as he had a second but, unfortunately, beyond words of encouragement, there wasn't a whole lot anyone could do to help the interns through this. The youngsters were getting a crash course in the absolute evil of humanity and they would have to work through their feelings about that in their own time and in their own way.

"You look tired," Brennan said in concern, reaching up to touch his cheek and drawing Booth's attention back to her.

"Yeah, I'm exhausted," he cupped his hand over hers, holding it in place against his cheek for a long moment before letting it go and giving her a tired smile, "but it's going to be a while before I can get out of here. Were you able to ID the bones as Mr. Harris?" Brennan blinked at the abrupt change of subject.

"I need to take a closer look in the lab but it stands to reason that those are the remains of Mr. Harris since they are missing a skull and there is only one adult male on the list of missing persons," she answered matter of factly and Booth nodded, his eyes going to the smaller skeleton. Brennan had only been able to uncover the right side from the knee to the clavicle because the adult had been lying partially on top of the remains. Seeing the anger ignite in Booth's eyes, Brennan followed his gaze, her hand automatically going to his arm and stroking it comfortingly. "Female, 10-15 years of age, no discernable cause of death or definitive characteristics that can be used for identification yet."

Booth knew that reserved, clinical tone, knew that she used it when she was very, very upset and was trying to distance herself from her feelings. She was just as upset about this situation as the interns, she was just better at hiding it. Without a second thought, he pulled her against him for a hug that he needed just as much as she did, not caring who saw them or what they thought about it. Sighing tiredly, Brennan relaxed against him, her arms slipping around his waist to return the hug, feeling peace steal over her for the first time that day.

"I have to get back to Hodgins," Booth said, regretfully releasing her a couple of minutes later.

"I know," Brennan sighed, hating to lose that sense of peace but knowing they had to protect the site from the rain. She had needed that brief respite from the anger she had been banking for so many hours. No longer quite so furious, now she was just irritated that her team had to stop digging. She knew it was necessary but she didn't like it when there were still remains to be recovered.

"I have someone standing by to take you and the interns to base camp whenever you're ready," Booth informed her, wishing with all his heart that he was going with her. He was physically exhausted and wanted nothing more than to get something hot to eat, find a soft bed and crawl into it next to Brennan for a few hours of much needed rest. Unhappily for him, that wasn't likely to happen anytime soon.

"I'll send the interns but I want to spend some time in the lab," she said firmly, her tone telling him it wouldn't do any good to argue. Her mind was made up.

"Where are the interns?" he asked and Brennan looked around in surprise that they hadn't yet returned with the requested tarp.

"I don't know," she blinked, not at all used to her instructions not being followed to the letter. Despite his tiredness, Booth found himself laughing at her shock. Her eyes narrowed, telling him she didn't think outright defiance was funny and the interns would be finding that out when she caught up with them. Scanning the surrounding area, she didn't see any of the offenders and she started toward the lab without another word.

"Hey," Booth caught her arm and pulled her to a stop, his face now solemn, "take it easy on them, Bones. They're already upset," he cautioned.

"I know that, Booth," she sighed. "I can only surmise from their unnatural silence today that they are having difficulty separating their personal feelings from their professional duties," she continued and he nodded in agreement, not at all surprised that she had picked up on that. She was a lot more perceptive than she gave herself credit for.

"They're understandably upset, baby," he soothed, his hand coming up to cup her cheek. "You had to have expected that."

"Of course I did, Booth," she answered a little impatiently, "but I can't tolerate open defiance. I'm not going to severely chastise them but they have to be able to follow instructions or they're no good to me or anyone else out here." Brennan met his eyes squarely, not giving an inch when it came to her professional standards. She didn't appear to be upset by his intervention but Booth had to admit that she was right about needing the interns' compliance and he really had no call to interfere with how she chose to run her team. If she wanted his assistance, she had no problem using her words and asking for it.

"Booth, we need you," yelled Hodgins.

"Coming," Booth yelled back, his eyes still holding Brennan's and echoing an apology for his intrusion. "Just have the interns find Jenkins when they're ready to go and I'll see you later."

"I'll be in the lab," she nodded, accepting the silent apology and starting to walk toward the big bus and her AWOL interns the instant he let go of her arm. Booth winced, hoping she took his words to heart and wasn't too hard on the already stressed interns but he wasn't about to get in the middle of it.

Brennan wasn't angry about Booth's advice. In fact, in most cases, she would welcome his assistance in interpersonal relationships but this wasn't about interpersonal relationships. She had told Booth the unvarnished truth. If she couldn't trust her team to focus and follow directions, they were of absolutely no use to her. She couldn't watch all of them all of the time and do her job and she had to know that they were going to be able to handle this or she needed a plan B.

Rounding the front of the bus, her eyes narrowed as she caught sight of her morose interns in a huddle and they were no longer silent. They were all four whispering furiously but she couldn't make out the words.

"We should just tell Dr. Brennan how we feel," Daisy said loudly enough for Brennan to overhear and she had to agree with Ms. Wick. If there was a problem, she definitely needed to know about it.

"Is there a problem?" she asked, stepping out of the shadows and four aghast faces turned in her direction, her interns, once again, going mute. Crossing her arms over her chest, her eyes moved from one face to the next, knowing they would be answering her soon when they began to fidget under her stare.

"We don't want to leave," blurted out Fisher and the other three nodded as if that explained everything. It didn't and her face told them so.

"We want to stay and keep working," Vincent added.

"It doesn't seem right to just leave them out there like that," Wendell burst out, gesturing back toward the grave and Brennan's face softened. This was the fire and determination she had wanted to see in them. As long as they felt like this, they would be able to get through the awful things they would be seeing in the next few days. Unfortunately, now that they were fired up, she had to calm them down and, not being used to explaining herself to anyone or sharing her innermost feelings with anyone but Booth, she could only try to let them know she understood those feelings. She started by simply addressing their statements.

"Nothing about this situation is right, Wendell," she said quietly and they all blinked as if they were surprised she wasn't yelling about their defiance then slowly nodded, in complete agreement with that statement. "None of us want to leave these children in that grave any longer than necessary, Mr. Nigel Murray. But the only way we can even hope to give those children and their families any semblance of justice, instead of just handing them remains to rebury is to preserve any clues present in that grave," Brennan's voice reverberated with passionate belief in her words and the interns were enthralled, never having seen her this open about anything before. "We have no choice but to stop digging while this structure is being erected," she gestured to the large crates that were being moved into place around the dig site. "Beyond that, I need you all sufficiently nourished and rested when we resume digging because we can't afford to make any mistakes. It's going to be almost entirely up to us to preserve and uncover any clues that will bring whoever committed this massacre to justice so I also need to know that you are focused and able to follow my directions." By this time, the interns were eagerly nodding. Brennan was glad to see she was getting through to them but she still had a couple of things to say. "I will not, cannot, tolerate defiance or ineptitude. You're all here because you have proven yourselves with your work in the lab but, if you can't function in this situation, I need to know that now." Finished, Brennan met the eyes of each intern individually.

"I'm in," Wendell said quietly.

"I can do this," Daisy stated, the quiver in her voice overriding the assurance she was trying to project. No matter, until she proved otherwise, Brennan would take her at her word.

"I would consider it an honor to continue to offer my assistance on so noble of an endeavor," Vincent said sincerely and Brennan bit back a smile at the courtly bow that accompanied the words.

"I won't let you down, Dr. Brennan," Fisher responded, for once dropping his gloom and doom façade and meeting Brennan's eyes squarely, his face filled with determination.

"Very well," Brennan nodded, satisfied that she had made her point. "Mr. Fisher, I would like for you and Mr. Nigel Murray to secure the dig site, as previously requested." All four interns winced at the note of disapproval in her voice that that particular task hadn't already been accomplished and Fisher and Vincent both grabbed for the tarp lying on the ground in front of them. Vincent was faster and took off toward the grave with Fisher hot on his heels.

"What can we do, Dr. Brennan?" asked Daisy, indicating her and Wendell.

"Have the tools been cleaned?" Brennan asked and Daisy looked stricken so Brennan knew the answer was no. "Please make sure they're cleaned then store them in the lab. As soon as the tools are finished, Wendell, find Agent Jenkins and he will take you to base camp. Please inform me when you leave," she finished, already stepping up into the lab, her mind cataloguing what she needed to accomplish over the next few hours. Daisy and Wendell exchanged a wry glance that Dr. Brennan was obviously finished sharing and hopped to it.

Booth and Hodgins, who had approached the lab in search of the tarp to cover the dig site themselves, stepped back around the bus and shared a grin when Fisher and Vincent rushed by without ever seeing them. They weren't trying to hide but this just seemed like a personal moment between Brennan and her team and they didn't want to intrude.

"Wow, that was some "Go team" speech from Dr. B.," Hodgins grinned approvingly.

"Yeah," agreed Booth, smiling with pride. His Bones didn't need him or Sweets to talk to her people. She had just proven she could handle them all on her own.

"You do know that I was just kidding about the kissing thing with her earlier today, right?" Hodgins asked, fidgeting in discomfort.

"If I hadn't known you were kidding, Hodgins, I would have shot you on the spot," Booth informed him cheerfully, giving him a friendly clap on the shoulder as they walked back toward the dig site. Hodgins gave a startled laugh then turned serious.

"Congratulations, man, I know you'll be very happy together," he said seriously and a little wistfully, his eyes automatically searching the scene for Angela even though he knew she had left hours ago. "We've all known the two of you belonged together for years," he rambled absently, his eyes falling on the progress of the small army he had called in to construct Brennan's igloo.

"Thanks," Booth acknowledged the good wishes before he addressed the other. "And you know as soon as things settle down a little, we're all going to have a nice, long chat about the other, right?" Booth crossed his arms over his chest and gave Hodgins a stern look to let the bug man know he was serious.

"Um, yeah, I kind of figured that," Hodgins fidgeted, looking sheepish. "Would it make a difference if I said we were only trying to help?" he asked placatingly.

"Not really," Booth answered immediately. "We didn't need your help," he said loftily and Hodgins looked at him incredulously.

"I know that. NOW. But we didn't know it then so, technically, you and Dr. B. are just as responsible for what happened as we were," Hodgins postulated, his arms gesturing wildly.

"Are you kidding me?" Booth demanded incredulously, turning toward Hodgins, hands on hips, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Yeah," admitted Hodgins with a long suffering sigh, "but it was worth a shot," he grinned and Booth had to laugh.

"Nice try," Booth admitted, not wanting to get into this right now. His plate was already full to overflowing and he just didn't have the time or energy to give the subject the attention it deserved. "But it can wait until we get finished with this."

"Good enough," Hodgins nodded gratefully. He knew there would be a payment due for their attempted interference in Booth and Brennan's personal life but none of them needed the extra angst on top of what they were currently facing. Before either man could say another word, Hodgins was approached by three of his men and Booth's attention was hailed by Hamilton. Sharing an eye roll, they turned in different directions to get back to work.


	36. Chapter 36

**As promised, a nice long chapter. Enjoy. And please don't forget to review.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Several hours later, Booth was finally finished with everything he could possibly accomplish on site today. He was unbelievably exhausted, mentally and physically, but he couldn't leave until Van Buren returned because someone needed to be there to oversee while there were so many non-agency people running around. Plus, the site had to be guarded against whoever was sabotaging the equipment and the only people he trusted at present to do that was himself, Van Buren, Jenkins and Hamilton. Admittedly, there was no way anyone could get near the grave tonight without being noticed but remains had been moved to the mobile lab and it could conceivably be a target, especially with all the activity around the grave drawing attention away from the lab. Although it didn't make sense to him to make a move on the lab until all the evidence was on board, he still had Hamilton on guard duty just to be on the safe side, especially since Brennan was inside.

Tomorrow, he would work out a schedule, alternating guard duty but for tonight, he was winging it. He had sent Van Buren to base camp in early afternoon to grab some food and sleep so he could relieve him at 2am which was in 20 minutes, Booth noted checking his watch. He wanted to check on the progress of Hodgins' crew then he knew he would have to drag Brennan out of the lab because he hadn't seen her around the dig site handing out orders to be careful and not disturb her site since she had disappeared into the lab. That could only mean that she was completely immersed in whatever she was doing and would probably be resistant to leaving it. Walking back into the clearing that had been made to erect the shelter, Booth's eyes widened at the progress that had been made.

"Wow, that thing is really going up fast," he said in surprise, stopping beside Hodgins, his eyes roaming the growing structure.

"Yep," acknowledged Hodgins, rocking back on his heels in satisfaction, his arms crossed over his chest, critically eying the workers. "They should be finished in another couple of hours," he said, turning his head toward Booth.

Booth's eyes remained on the structure. It actually did look like an igloo, approximately 30 feet in diameter, necessitating the sacrifice of several trees to make room for it to be erected. It was already at least 6 feet tall but he could tell it would be getting significantly taller before it finished in the typical dome. The panels busily being fitted in place looked like slightly cloudy glass but Booth realized they weren't when one of the workers dropped one and it didn't shatter. Noticing Booth's wince, Hodgins glanced back at the workers and laughed.

"Don't sweat it, Gman. Those panels are practically indestructible," he assured Booth. "They ought to be with what it cost to develop them," he grumbled under his breath and Booth's interest was caught.

"How much are we talking about here, bug man?" asked Booth curiously.

"Overall, almost 30 million went into developing the formula for the panels," Hodgins' shrugged unconcernedly and Booth blinked at the reminder of just how rich the bug man was. Yeah, Booth knew Hodgins was loaded but he never, ever flaunted it and it was a bit disconcerting to hear him throw out numbers like that as if he was talking about pocket change. Then again, when you were as wealthy as Hodgins was, it just might be.

"Exactly how much are you going to be billing the government for the use of this igloo, Hodgins?" Booth queried half jokingly, sure he already knew the answer.

"Not a cent," Hodgins assured him, sounding insulted by the question. "Trust me, they couldn't afford it," he continued cheerfully, "and it wouldn't really be right to bill them for something they kind of already own." Booth's head slowly turned and he met Hodgins' laughing eyes, beginning to get a really bad feeling about this.

"What do you mean, the government already owns this? I thought you got this thing from one of your companies," he growled, his eyes narrowing at Hodgins' guilty expression.

"I know," sighed Hodgins. "But it just so happens that this particular one technically belongs to NASA," he added sheepishly, scratching his head and bracing himself for the explosion undoubtedly coming his way.

"NASA? _You stole something from NASA_?" gaped Booth incredulously rubbing an agitated hand across his face, feeling his blood pressure shoot through the roof. _Dammit, he was grateful for Hodgins' contribution but he so didn't need another problem, especially a doozy the size of being in possession of stolen goods from freaking NASA. _

"Not exactly," Hodgins blinked and held up his hands in a settle down motion, a little surprised at how upset Booth seemed to be getting. "It was paid for by NASA but it was technically in the physical custody of my company so I consider it more like borrowing," he explained. Booth pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, biting back words of anger and frustration, telling himself to stay calm and discuss this rationally, to not lash out at Hodgins' entitled behavior. "Come on, Booth. It was the only prototype that we could make work and it was sitting in a warehouse gathering dust. They weren't using it and we needed it so I didn't see the problem," Hodgins shrugged imperturbably and Booth's temper snapped, the stress and frustration of dealing with problem after never ending problem pouring out in anger whether Hodgins deserved to be the brunt of it or not.

"Well, gee, Hodgins, if you didn't see a problem then how could there possibly be one?" he snapped, heavy on the sarcasm. "Dammit, Hodgins, what the hell were you thinking?" Booth knew he was being a little unfair. Hodgins was only trying to help, but, crap, as the Agent In Charge and the person ultimately responsible for whatever happened here, it would have been nice to have had some warning that their asses were going to be on the line for something so major instead of being handed a fait accompli, helpless to do any real damage control.

"I was thinking that with the current level of technology, NASA wouldn't need their greenhouse for Mars in our lifetime," Hodgins snapped right back, drawing himself up to his full height, stiff with outrage, feeling like his gift was being thrown back in his face. "I was thinking that this "igloo" was our best chance to protect this site and ultimately catch the kind of scum who kill children and throw them in a mass grave. I was thinking that we can build them a brand spanking new one and they'll never know the difference," he finished, deflating completely and Booth found his anger ebbing, as well.

"Well, hell, Hodgins, why couldn't you have just said that first?" Booth growled, a glint of humor entering his eyes.

"Yeah, that probably would have been good," Hodgins agreed with a wry grin, eying Booth a little warily. He had known Booth would be pissed when he found out but, man, the FBI agent was a little scary when he got really riled up and he obviously had a serious problem with people taking things that technically didn't belong to them.

"A greenhouse for Mars? As in the planet? Seriously?" Booth reverted back to something Hodgins had said that had definitely caught his interest.

"I'm serious as a heart attack. That structure was earmarked to go to Mars," Hodgins confirmed, pointing at the greenhouse. "Are you still mad?" he asked cautiously, wanting to confirm that the crisis was over so he would know how much to filter any further information to avoid a repeat. _Oh, who was he kidding?_ He wasn't going to lie about it no matter how much it pissed off the other man. He had done what he had seen as necessary and if it came back to bite them in the ass, he would handle it.

"Not so much," sighed Booth, unable to argue with Hodgins' reasons for getting them in this mess. The bug man's heart was definitely in the right place. "You could have just told me what was going on from the beginning, you know."

"Yeah, right," snorted Hodgins. "I'm sure that you, Mr. Law and Order himself, would have been perfectly fine with me taking something that NASA had already paid 8 million dollars for."

Booth winced at the words, now knowing they were in deep crap if they got busted because of the cost alone. He also knew that Hodgins was right. He was fairly certain that if Hodgins had used his impassioned "It will help us catch child killers" speech, he would have eventually agreed to the plan but he knew himself well enough to know he would have objected to anything illegal and insisted on looking for alternatives, costing them time they could ill afford. He also knew that it would be pointless to offer further objections. What was done was done.

"Besides, if none of you knew, you all have plausible deniability if it does come back to bite me in the ass," Hodgins shrugged good naturedly.

_Damn, now Booth felt like a jerk_. Here he was yelling at the guy and Hodgins was just trying to do what he could to help and protect his friends at the same time. "Yeah, yeah, Hodgins, I get it, you're a good guy," Booth acknowledged and Hodgins grinned at the note of sincerity in his voice, unaccountably touched that Booth thought he was a good guy. "Just do me a favor and run it by me first if you decide to steal anything else. Okay?"

"I can do that," Hodgins grinned, nodding so eagerly that it made Booth a little nervous.

"On second thought, how about you just not steal anything else and then we won't have a problem?" Booth suggested as an alternative.

"Fine," sighed Hodgins as if giving up a life of thievery was the hardest thing he had ever done and Booth bit back a laugh. As much as Hodgins sometimes irritated him, Booth genuinely liked and respected the other man and he really did think he was a good guy, not the entitled asshole he had once assumed him to be, despite his recent bonehead stunts.

"Look, Hodgins, I know you were trying to do a good thing and I can appreciate that but I, we, don't need any more problems with this case so just try to tone it down from here on out. Okay?" Booth asked tiredly and Hodgins winced, suddenly beginning to see the kind of trouble he had potentially stirred up for Booth.

In his own defense, he had meant well but he hadn't really given the whole getting in trouble thing a second thought. After all, NASA had no real power over him or the Jeffersonian and the worst they could really do was pontificate and he had lawyers to handle that kind of stuff. In his arrogance, he hadn't really considered that they could bring all kinds of pressure to bear on Booth whom he considered a friend and Booth would be the one to bear the brunt of whatever angst NASA threw at them.

"I'm really sorry, man," Hogins sighed, his hands pushing deeply into his pockets, his eyes meeting Booth's determinedly. "The truth is that I never really gave NASA finding out a second thought. I knew we could replace it long before they would ever need it and the cost was negligible in comparison with the need we had for it. But you're right, I should have told you what was going on and I never, ever meant to cause problems for you. It won't happen again. Plus, if NASA does find out, I have a hell of a team of lawyers we can throw at them. They'll never know what hit them." By the time Hodgins finished speaking, he was talking almost as fast as Daisy and waving his arms around and Booth was having trouble keeping up with his words and dodging his flailing arms at the same time.

Finally making sense of the words, Booth couldn't keep his lips from twitching. It was kind of touching that Hodgins was worried about causing trouble for him but it was amusing as hell that the bug man seemed to think this was the very first time the squints had ever brought the wrath of some other department or branch of the government down on his head. The sad truth was they rarely worked a case where someone on the squint squad didn't manage to royally piss off or offend someone and he had to make nice. By now, he was a freaking good will ambassador for the squints. Granted, he wasn't especially looking forward to fighting with NASA but if they did find out and make an issue of it, it wasn't something he couldn't handle either. "I appreciate the offer Hodgins, but why don't we wait and see what happens before we sic the lawyers on NASA, huh?" he managed with a straight face.

"If you're sure," Hodgins agreed after a moment of thought, watching Booth intently, finally relaxing when he received a nod of confirmation. "So are we good now?" he asked cautiously a long second later. Hodgins' attention was suddenly drawn by a worker yelling for him from inside the greenhouse. He looked at Booth, clearly torn between answering the call and continuing this conversation.

"Yeah, Hodgins, we're good but I'm trusting you to not let me down," Booth assured him dipping his head to hide his grin.

"You can count on me," Hodgins promised, drawing himself up to his full height and puffing out his chest, immediately hurrying off to find out what he was needed for and, therefore, not let Booth down.

"Coffee, Boss?" asked an amused voice from beside Booth, a styrofoam cup appearing in his line of vision.

"Thanks," Booth said, taking the coffee from Van Buren gratefully and taking a big sip.

"You look like you could use it," mused Van Buren, wincing at how tired and stressed Booth looked. He had overheard enough of Booth's conversation with the science guy to know there was potentially big trouble on the horizon and be glad he wasn't in charge here.

In fact, he was extremely glad he wasn't the one riding herd on the squint squad as he had heard Booth refer to them several times today and after his admittedly limited contact with them today, he couldn't imagine why anyone would want to. No matter how attractive he found Dr. Saroyan or how upbeat and charming he found Angela, he wasn't blind and they both had high maintenance written all over them. Add to that the fact that they had both proven to be demanding, slightly patronizing and extremely tenacious whenever anyone had challenged them as if they were both used to getting their way and he had found them both utterly exhausting to deal with.

He hadn't had much contact with the younger four but that little contact had told him they weren't your average Joes, either. Plus, you couldn't be an FBI agent and not be aware of the crime fighting duo of Special Agent Seeley Booth and Dr. Temperence Brennan. They had the highest crime solve rate in the history of the bureau but the horror stories about the difficult doctor abounded. Granted, Van Buren hadn't officially met her today but what he had seen had told him that those stories, while probably grossly exaggerated, most likely contained a grain of truth. She just didn't strike him as an easy woman to deal with. He couldn't imagine how stressful it was for Booth to deal with these brilliant, driven people in a group setting on a daily basis but he doubted Booth would appreciate him expressing his sympathies for his choice of career paths so he stepped up beside Booth and looked around with interest at the changes that had taken place on site since his departure.

"Yeah," agreed Booth. "Everything under control at base camp?"

"Everything's fine," Van Buren assured Booth easily, taking a sip of his own coffee, feeling much more comfortable in this environment than he had back at base camp. He much preferred the relative quiet and the sense of purpose of the working men to the uncontrolled chaos of all those people wandering around base camp with nothing in particular to do except get in his way and annoy him and each other. Hopefully, tomorrow, Booth could send the majority of them on their way and things would settle down. "There was an incident with a couple of the techs and Dr. Brennan's team," Van Buren stated flatly, unsure how Booth would take the news. He hadn't seen Booth and Dr. Brennan together that much today but from what he had seen, his gut told him that the two were a lot more than partners and he was certain Booth wasn't going to like the circumstances of the incident.

"What kind of incident?" Booth demanded, turning his head and pinning Van Buren with a look that told him to spill and to do it quickly.

"From what I was told, the techs made some rude comments about Dr. Brennan within her team's hearing and they responded in kind. But," Van Buren hurried to continue his explanation when he saw the anger blooming in Booth's eyes, "the supervisor was there and put a stop to it. He immediately sent the two techs back to the city."

"Damn," cursed Booth roundly, running a hand through his hair. The FBI crime scene team they were using was from the closest office, not one from DC that was used to working with Brennan and her team. Over the years, those techs had become inured to insult and, surprisingly enough, busted their asses to do an exemplary job, hoping to gain Brennan's approval. Unfortunately, she had been in fine form this morning when she had very vocally informed him that her team's skills were much too valuable to waste on picking up trash and that she would be more than happy to turn that part of the crime scene over to the FBI. Booth knew she had simply been telling the truth but several of the techs had overheard her and it wasn't all that surprising they had found it insulting. It was surprising that they would retaliate in such a juvenile, unprofessional manner but he guessed they had been afraid to take on Brennan so they had picked on her interns instead. Completely unacceptable. He was beginning to feel like a kindergarten teacher and it wasn't a reassuring feeling when you thought of the situation they were facing. "The crime scene techs shouldn't need more than a couple of hours in the morning, then they can all head back." _And good riddance_, he added silently, making a mental note to get the names of the two techs in question and have a little chat with someone in authority over their behavior. "Anything else?" Booth queried, not really sure he wanted to know.

"Charlie finished faxing all of the background checks on the road crew. I looked them over but nothing jumped out at me." Booth's eyebrow arched when Van Buren paused and grinned into his coffee before continuing. "The sleeping arrangements were getting a little tight. Angela has taken over room assignments and was in the process of playing musical rooms when I went to bed. She was already asleep when I woke up and I had no idea where it would be safe to leave them so I locked them in the SUV for you to take a look at." Van Buren couldn't help but laugh at the God, help us all look on Booth's face. "Don't worry," he grinned, repeating Angela's own words to Booth, "she's got it all under control."

Booth rolled his eyes and snorted into his coffee knowing that Angela thinking she had things under control was no real guarantee that they were actually under control. "Let's just hope she's right this time," Booth mumbled, taking comfort in knowing that him and Brennan being roomies with Angela in charge was pretty much a given. And he was more than ready to round up his roomy and get some sleep. Enough of this chitchatting. "Anything else?" Van Buren simply shook his head and Booth nodded.

"Okay, then," Booth said. "When they finish with the greenhouse, I want two people inside at all times. After the construction team clears out, I want no one and I mean no one in there until Bones and her team gets back," he barked out.

"What about the bus?" Van Buren asked, slipping into work mode.

"Keep someone on it," Booth ordered. He knew it was stretching them thin but the grave was the only real potential for evidence they had and the bus was housing that evidence as it was being removed meaning both had to be protected. Luckily, they had five more agents scheduled to arrive later this morning which would give them a little relief.

"Done," Van Buren replied easily. "Anything else, Boss?"

"No. I should be back here around 0800." Booth winced as he looked at his watch and noted it was 2:20 am. He wasn't going to get as much sleep as he would have liked but he had too much to do to allow himself any longer for such a luxury. "The satellite phone is in the lab if you need me."

"Understood," Van Buren assured him, hoping like hell that nothing came up requiring him to disturb the other man. "Goodnight."

"Night," Booth called over his shoulder, already striding toward the lab to collect Brennan and leave the multiplying problems of this assignment behind for a few hours.

Brennan pushed back from the examination table in the mobile lab with a muttered curse and looked around, knowing she wouldn't find the equipment that she needed. "Damn," she muttered again, finally locating the only alternative available and turning back to the body. She knew the mobile lab was set up mainly to aid in the collection of remains and evidence, not the in depth examination of either one but she had found something interesting and she needed a closer look. She needed to be in the lab where these bones could be properly cleaned and x-rayed but she didn't have those capabilities on hand so, for now, she would simply have to work with what she had. Within seconds, she was, once again, lost in her examination of the remains.

Booth quietly entered the lab, his eyes instantly going to Brennan who was highlighted in the only lights that had been turned on in the entire lab, his mouth unconsciously curving into a smile at the sight he had seen countless times before. She was bent over a table that pulled out from the wall peering at the remains they had removed from the grave earlier through a lighted, magnifying glass. Granted, the pull out table wasn't nearly as impressive as the one sitting atop the platform in the middle of the lab but Brennan, his Bones, was always magnificent. _And not entirely happy at the moment_, he noted as he walked closer and heard her muttering under her breath.

"Crap," she muttered loudly, slapping something down on the table set up beside her hard enough to rattle the rest of the equipment resting there while very gently lowering the bone in her hand back to the table.

"Problem?" he asked softly, stepping up behind her, his hands going to her shoulders and gently kneading the tense muscles there.

"I need to be in the lab to properly examine these remains," she admitted, leaning back against him with a tired sigh.

"And you will be back in the lab just as soon as we finish here," he soothed, dropping a kiss on the top of her head, not even trying to hide his grin at her prolonged sigh which told him that she knew he was right but she didn't like it. "Have you got an ID for me?"

"Yes, I found a childhood fracture of the ulna," Booth's eyes followed Brennan's hand as she pointed to a forearm but he didn't see whatever she was trying to show him. That was okay, he trusted her implicitly. "I also found rib fractures consistent with those Mr. Harris suffered in a fall two years before his disappearance. These are definitely the remains of Charles Harris," she nodded.

"Anything else?" he teased, knowing there was no way that was all she had after hours of examining the bones. Her head turned slowly and she pinned him with narrowed, blue eyes that told him she didn't find his joke funny. He laughed anyway, dropping a quick kiss on the tip of her nose.

"Of course," she stepped away from him, hiding her own grin at Booth's good mood. It always made her smile to hear him laugh but this wasn't play time, it was work time. "He received a gunshot wound to the chest," she supplied, pointing to the area in question and Booth's eyebrows rose. He had been under the impression a gunshot to the head had been the cause of death. "I doubt this was the cause of death because the angle of entry indicates the bullet would have missed all the vital organs before exiting his back," she pointed to another spot on the skeleton but Booth still didn't see anything but dirt encrusted bones. "To be certain, I need to clean the bones and take a closer look. An examination of the skull would also be beneficial," Brennan went on as if she could read his mind but Booth was no longer surprised by that developing phenomenon.

"Um, yeah, about that. I had the skull sent directly to the lab from the coroner's office," he admitted, readying himself for the coming explosion. Being in a relationship with Brennan didn't save him from getting his ass chewed when he did something she didn't like regarding work. Much to his surprise, she only blinked at him, tilted her head to the side to indicate she was considering this then slowly nodded.

"That makes sense," she allowed with a sigh.

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with my Bones?" Booth teased, pleased with her startled laughter. Not that long ago, she wouldn't have known what that meant. "Are you finished here?" he asked, brushing a lock of hair from her cheek.

"Not really," she said, her voice full of frustration, "I've found a couple of interesting abnormalities but I can't get a better look at them without the proper equipment and facilities," she acknowledged.

"So, you're finished with the remains?" Booth queried and Brennan's eyes narrowed at his rather dogmatic questioning. On top of her physical and emotional fatigue, she was finding it just a tad irritating.

"I just said I was, Booth," she returned a little impatiently, immediately regretting her tone. "I'm sorry," she sighed apologetically, giving him a tired smile.

"I understand," he allowed softly, his thumb sweeping across her cheek. "It's been a hard day for everyone but I had an idea I wanted to run by you." She nodded to indicate he had her undivided attention. "What kind of problems would it cause you if we shipped the remains back to the Jeffersonian individually? As soon as they're disinterred?" he asked and Brennan frowned, unsure of why he would want to do such a thing.

"I don't understand," she answered cautiously.

"Okay," Booth sighed, sinking down onto the stool beside the metal table she had been previously occupying and pulling her between his legs, his hands settling on her hips. "We know that someone deliberately sabotaged the heavy equipment," he began and she nodded. He had kept her updated throughout the day on anything relevant and had continuously expressed concern for her and her team's safety based on assumptions he had made from that fact. _Logical and highly probable assumptions_, Brennan had to admit but she still didn't understand and Booth could clearly see that in her eyes. "We have to assume that whoever did the sabotaging doesn't want us here." Brennan nodded, agreeing with that assessment. "As much as I hate to admit it, there's just no way we can completely secure the scene." Booth admitted with a sigh and Brennan blinked at the seeming change in subject but seconds later her eyes widened as her whirling brain made the connection.

"You think it's probable that someone will try to destroy our evidence," she mused aloud, the hands that had been resting on his chest moving to his shoulders.

"Destroy, contaminate, steal, but yeah, I do think they'll give it a shot," Booth acknowledged.

"And they can't do that if the evidence has already been transferred to the Jeffersonian," Brennan continued softly to herself, examining the plan for flaws and finding none. "Sneaky," she grinned down at Booth approvingly, her hands framing his grinning face.

"I'm glad you approve." Laughing, he linked his hands behind her back and tilted his head back so he could see her smiling face more clearly, the sight making the irritation and aggravation of this entire frustrating day and every one like it fade into insignificance.

"I will, of course, need a little time for the superficial exam that is all that's possible in these circumstances but as soon as identification is made and sufficient samples are collected, I don't see a problem with your plan." She was off and running, her body relaxing against his, her hands running up and down his arms. "It also has the added benefit of Clark being able to process the remains and start a more detailed examination," she mused further, her enthusiasm for the plan growing by leaps and bounds as she considered all the benefits.

"Umm hmm, we'll send Mr. Harris down to get acquainted with Clark first thing in the morning. Now are you ready to get out of here?" he asked softly, standing and holding out a hand.

"Are you sure Mr. Harris' remains will be safe until morning?" she asked, chewing on her bottom lip. Booth blinked, his eyes narrowing at the question. In his estimation, Mr. Harris was as safe it was possible to make him for the moment.

"Yeah, Bones, I think Mr. Harris will be fine until morning," he finally supplied honestly. He could go over how many agents he had on site and that one was specifically guarding the lab but she already knew all that.

"Maybe we should stay just to be sure," she suggested, avoiding eye contact. As valid as Brennan's concern was, Booth knew stalling when he saw it and he was starting to get a little concerned. His Bones didn't stall, she just flat out told you what was on her mind.

"Hey, what's going on?" he asked, tilting her chin up, his face full of concern and Brennan's heart melted at the sight of all that concern specifically for her.

"Wendell was right," she said softly, "it just doesn't seem right to leave them here like this," she explained at Booth's raised brow, not really wanting to get into the fact that she had spent the past few hours debating the feasibility of remaining onsite and resuming the excavation as soon as the shelter was in place which Hodgins had assured her would be within a couple of hours. If she did that, she could sleep in one of the cots whenever time allowed and she wouldn't have to feel like she was abandoning those poor children.

"Oh, baby," Booth sighed, reading the emotion in her eyes, "you have to know you can't stay here every minute." His hands cupped her face, his thumbs smoothing over her cheeks. "You need some sleep to keep the junior squints on the straight and narrow and you can't really expect the kiddies to follow orders if you don't set a good example," he chided lightly and she nodded, already having decided that no one possessed the physical stamina to continuously dig and competently supervise the interns at the same time. Just as she had told the interns about themselves, without adequate amounts of sleep, she would be useless or, worse, a detriment to the team. But as compellingly logical as that epiphany was, it was proving more difficult to put into action than she had ever thought possible.

She had seen much worse things in her years as a forensic anthropologist but she had always been able to distance herself from the sadness and horror in order to do her job. Yes, she had felt those things but she had been able to compartmentalize them until a more appropriate time. She had no idea why but that distancing ability seemed to have deserted her on this case. She was feeling every single, seething emotion and she didn't like it at all. She also had no idea what to do about it and Booth already had enough problems to deal with without dumping this in his lap. It was sweet of him to try to make her feel better but she needed to figure this one out for herself.

"I know," she sighed, her arms lifting and encircling his neck. "Thank you for trying to make me feel better," she whispered, tilting her head and brushing her lips against his.

"You're welcome," he whispered back, his lips nudging hers further apart and deepening the kiss, his hands sliding from her face to her back and pulling her against him. Moaning, Brennan wrapped herself around him and lost herself in just letting the love and desire, the feeling of absolute peace and belonging she always felt wrapped in his arms wash over her. When they pulled apart, panting, several minutes later, she found she did, indeed, feel much, much better.

"I'm ready now," she said with a soft smile.

"Me, too," growled Booth, his face nuzzling into her neck, his lips leisurely trailing over the soft skin of her throat, his hands smoothing down her back to her bottom and pulling her against him to demonstrate that he was, indeed, ready.

"I meant I was ready to go," Brennan clarified, her voice full of laughter which was abruptly cut off with a gasp when Booth's teeth nipped the sensitive cord in the side of her neck.

"Umm hmm," Booth murmured, delighting in the way her head tilted to give him better access, the sexy little noises emerging from her throat sending shivers down his spine. His tongue flicked out to soothe the spot he had just used his teeth on and his hands tightened on her hips, pulling her closer, her moan of pleasure vibrating against his lips and shooting straight to his already hard groin. Her hands moved restlessly on his back, finally slipping just inside the back of his jeans, her nails digging into the upper curves of his buttocks. Shuddering, Booth knew they needed to stop this and get out of here before things got completely out of hand. _Which was going to be any second now_, he silently acknowledged as one slender hand slid further into his jeans, tunneled under his boxers and landed on his naked skin. Hissing at the feel of her nails lightly scraping his butt before her fingers spread out and began to stroke his skin, moving ever lower, one of Booth's hands cupped her jaw, tilting her face toward his seeking lips. Even knowing he was really, really pushing it, he couldn't deny himself just one more kiss.

Brennan groaned, her hand tightening on Booth's butt cheek as his lips found hers and he kissed her like he wanted to devour her. His mouth was hungry and hotly demanding, every rhythmic stroke of his tongue into her mouth sending darts of desire throughout her body to settle into a tightening, aching knot in her lower belly.

A loud knocking on the door of the lab jerked them apart only seconds before the door was opened and Van Buren stuck his head in. "I'm really sorry to bother you, Booth, but one of the workers spotted someone sneaking around in the woods. He got away but I've got the guys searching the surrounding area and I thought you would want to know," Van Buren rushed out, his eyes skipping over the obviously mussed pair, not having to take a second guess as to what he had just interrupted.

"Damn," muttered Booth under his breath. He had expected something like this just not quite so soon. "Yeah, Van Buren, keep them searching and I'll be right there," he called over his shoulder, his eyes searching Brennan's tired face.

"You got it, Boss," Van Buren agreed, quickly closing the door and heading back to help search.

"Looks like I'm going to be here for a while, baby," Booth sighed, running a finger down her soft cheek, "but I'll have someone take you to base camp so you can get some sleep." She was shaking her head before he even finished making the offer.

"I'll just wait here, Booth. I'll be fine," she assured him.

"You need to get some sleep," he argued, cupping her face in his big hands, his thumbs tracing over the very faint circles under her eyes.

"And I will. I'll take a nap in one of the cots and you can join me when you get done," she bargained, fluttering her lashes at him.

"Fine," he sighed trying to hide his amusement, knowing that when she resorted to flirting, it was pointless to argue with her. "But you stay in the lab," he said sternly and she nodded, giving him the big, innocent eyes. "I mean it, Bones," he warned, "you DO NOT leave this lab until you get the okay from me. Are we clear?" His eyes bored into hers.

"I understand," she said softly, not at all upset with the attitude, knowing he was only concerned with her safety. And the simple truth of the matter was that she very much liked his take charge attitude, she only wished they had enough time for her to show him just how much she liked it. "I won't leave the lab until you say its okay," she repeated and he nodded.

"I have to go," he said with flattering reluctance.

"I know," she acknowledged, her reluctance just as obvious as his.

Dropping a light kiss on her tempting lips, he forced himself to let her go and turn toward the door, simply raising a hand in acknowledgement of her order to "Be careful out there". His mind was already whirling with the possibilities of who would be lurking around in the woods at night and none of them were good. A reporter would be the best case scenario and that would be very, very bad. Running a hand through his hair, he stepped off of the bus and headed toward Van Buren who appeared to be deep in conversation with one of the other agents, wondering if it was too much to ask that something, anything, start to go right with this case some time soon.


	37. Chapter 37

**Hey, guys, are you all getting bored with this story yet? I did manage to finish a new chapter for the weekend and I hope you enjoy. Please remember to review and keep Musie happy.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth rolled over on what passed for a cot in the lab with a groan, wondering how the hell anybody could possibly sleep on something so freaking uncomfortable. With all the money at their disposal, you would think they could at least provide something for their people that didn't feel like you were lying on one of the metal tables. But no, they apparently didn't want anyone wasting time on unproductive, unnecessary pursuits like sleeping. Admittedly, it hadn't seemed nearly as uncomfortable when he had nudged Brennan over and crawled in with her at almost 5am but he had a feeling that had more to do with Brennan being snuggled against him than the cot actually being comfortable. Without opening his eyes, he knew that she was gone and that was probably what had woken him. God, he felt like crap, like he had only closed his eyes moments earlier but he knew he wouldn't be getting back to sleep on this stone like slab so he rubbed a hand over his face, rolling around to sit on the side of the cot with a sigh.

"Good morning, sunshine," chirped a gratingly cheerful voice. Booth's head jerked around toward the sound to see Angela sitting on a stool she had positioned where she could apparently watch him sleep while flipping through a magazine.

"What the hell are you doing, Angela?" he growled.

"I was watching you sleep," she confirmed his suspicions readily, not at all put out by his grouchy demeanor.

"Well, stop it," he ordered, "it's creepy and highly disturbing." Angela laughed as he stood and stretched to get the kink out of his back.

"Yeah, well, I was bored and there wasn't really anything else to do," Angela explained with an unapologetic shrug.

"Where's Bones?" Booth asked, sniffing as he caught the scent of fresh coffee.

"She and the interns went to work as soon as we got here," Angela sighed.

"And that was when?" Booth asked, finding the coffee and pouring himself a cup. Turning toward Angela, he leaned a hip against the counter and took a long, bracing sip of his very hot coffee. Wincing at his scorched tongue, he glanced at his watch. 7:14 am. _No wonder he felt like crap, he had only had around 4 hours of sleep in the last two nights._

"We got here about half an hour ago," Angela supplied, taking a sip of her own coffee, giving Booth a thoughtful, thorough perusal. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you look awful, Studly," she grinned.

"Gee, thanks, Ange. How could I possibly take that the wrong way?" he asked sarcastically, hoping he looked better than he felt.

"Glad to help," laughed Angela. "Now I've got something that will really cheer you up," she chirped and Booth's eyes narrowed, her tone making him seriously doubt that.

"And what would that be, Angela?" he asked at her expectant pause.

"I'm helping you today," she grinned, practically bouncing on her stool with excitement. Booth's eyes widened and he took a long sip of his coffee to stall for a little time to come up with a response to that generous offer. Somehow, oh, hell no, just didn't seem appropriate.

"Umm, Ange, that's really generous of you but you're not an FBI agent so I don't really see how you can help," he offered in relief, patting himself on the back for coming up with an appropriate, believable response.

Angela snorted. Loudly. "Oh, please, like I need a badge to walk around and give people orders," she countered, apparently unwilling to take no for an answer. "I'm really good at that already," she assured him.

"And modest, too," Booth muttered under his breath. Angela's eyes narrowed but she didn't comment so Booth didn't know if she had understood his words or not.

"Come on, Booth, there must be something I can do to help you today." Her voice took on a pleading note and Booth's eyes narrowed. Something was definitely up with the artist.

"What's going on, Angela?" Booth asked softly trying to make eye contact but she avoided meeting his eyes.

"It's kind of obvious you need the help, Booth," she began. "I mean you have to supervise a lot of people," she hastily added when she saw him stiffen at the perceived insult, "and you were so busy yesterday you didn't even make it to the lodge and had to sleep on that," she sneered delicately at the cot.

"Angela," he drew out warningly, not having the time, inclination or patience to play games this morning.

"Okay, fine," she sighed, finally meeting his eyes with a beseeching look on her face. "Everyone is really busy and I just keep getting in the way," she admitted.

"Why don't you help Hodgins?" Booth asked curiously.

"Apparently, I'm not qualified," she sounded a little bewildered and very disgruntled about that and Booth couldn't really blame her. He got that she wasn't qualified to assist Brennan but what kind of qualifications did you really need to sift through all the dirt the team was removing from the grave?

"Says who?" Booth asked cautiously.

"Hodgins, Cam and Brennan," Angela sighed and Booth winced. It couldn't have been pleasant to have been told by all three that you weren't qualified to play in the dirt.

"Did they say why?" he asked curiously, knowing that none of the three would be deliberately cruel to the artist.

"Something about the evidence collection having to stand up in court," she admitted, omitting the fact that she had been a tad upset and highly insulted that her three colleagues didn't seem to think she was smart enough to dig through piles of dirt but she was over that now. After mulling it over, she understood their reasoning and wasn't holding it against them but she couldn't spend another whole day at the lodge. It was much nicer than she had expected but she was bored out of her mind and she felt completely useless. She just wanted to do something productive, to do whatever she could to help everyone get through this awful situation and right now, Booth was her best chance of that happening. "I just want to help, too, Booth," she assured him quietly, giving him hopeful glances from beneath her lashes.

Booth could understand Brennan's caution on this one. If they were actually lucky enough to recover any evidence, it would be bad to have it excluded because Angela had collected it and she wasn't specifically trained to do so. It wasn't personal and he could see that Angela knew that. He could also see that she desperately wanted to help. Sighing internally, he knew he would wind up finding her something to do so she could feel useful and stay out of everyone's hair but he clearly didn't answer quickly enough to suit her.

"I don't even know why they brought me," she heaved in a huge sigh of lament, peeking at him from under her lashes. Booth snorted into his coffee and Angela managed to look hurt for about three seconds before grinning at him impishly. "Too much drama queen?" she asked as if she really wanted to know so she could adjust her next performance accordingly.

"Way too much drama queen," Booth agreed. He was willing to help her out because he really didn't want to think about the kind of havoc she could wreak just wandering around aimlessly but he didn't have time to put up with any of her shenanigans today. "Okay, Angela, here's the deal. I'll find you something to do but I expect you to be on your best behavior," he told her sternly, amused at her eager nod. "The first hint of trouble will get you shipped back to the lodge," he warned.

"Fair enough," Angela grinned, jumping off her stool and Booth blinked at the transformation that took place. She went from a mischievous, teasing artist to a calm, professional persona within the space of a heartbeat, picking up a clipboard and looking at what appeared to be notes. "Brennan had Vincent bring in your overnight bag and it's in the bathroom." Booth nodded, pleased to have his toiletries and a change of clothing already handy. "The Talbert's sent over breakfast so if you're hungry, it's set up outside. Bren wants to see you when you get a chance and Agent Van Buren wants to talk to you ASAP." Booth's eyes widened as Angela very competently delivered his messages. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad having her help today. One could always hope for the best.

"Thanks, Angela," he murmured, finishing his coffee and tossing the empty cup in the trash, immediately heading for the miniscule bathroom at the back of the lab. He would love to have a 20 minute hot shower but the shower in the tiny bathroom was for decontamination purposes and wasn't equipped with a water heater so he was going to get a quick wash up with cold water and that would just have to suffice.

"You're welcome," Angela called after him, sounding so chipper that Booth rolled his eyes. He was glad he had made her feel better but he could only hope he didn't wind up regretting his decision to let her help and that she didn't drive him insane with good cheer today.

Five hours later, Booth was beginning to think that Angela's talents were being wasted on her art. She would have made one hell of a personal assistant and an even better Army drill sergeant. He had started out basically giving her inconsequential, busy work but she had uncomplainingly and efficiently accomplished every task, using a combination of flirty banter and iron will to boss his men around, leaving them somewhat bemused by her presence but happy to do as she asked. By now, she had graduated to actually assisting him and Booth had to admit that today was certainly proceeding much more smoothly than yesterday had. He didn't know if it was Angela's assistance or something else that was responsible but he welcomed the change of pace, grateful that he had time to actually catch his breath and get something accomplished today instead of just putting out fires.

"Do you think she'd be interested in joining the bureau?" Van Buren asked speculatively, nodding toward Angela as she went trotting across the clearing after an agent who was not following the clear instructions she had just given him.

"God, I hope not," Booth returned, shuddering with horror at the very thought. _Yeah, so far she was doing great but no way would the FBI survive her long term._

"Why not? She's doing a good job and she looks like she's having fun. It might be a good fit," Van Buren argued, playing devil's advocate.

"Trust me, Van Buren, when I tell you that the FBI isn't ready for Angela Montenegro," Booth returned decisively. "Did the team finish the second sweep of the woods yet?" he asked.

"Not yet," Van Buren replied, "but Evans radioed about ten minutes ago and they hadn't found anything yet."

"Yeah, I figured as much," mused Booth. They had searched for the intruder for more than two hours this morning without finding a trace of anyone but Booth had sent another team out to expand the search as soon as the five new agents had arrived. He hadn't really expected them to find anything but he had hoped they would spot something in the daylight that had been missed in the dark.

"You don't think it was a reporter, do you?" asked Van Buren quietly.

"No, I don't," sighed Booth. He couldn't imagine any press getting that close and not taking photos then splashing them all over the media. So far there had been no such photos making an appearance in print or cyberspace and that lessened the probability that the lurker had been a reporter. Unfortunately, only one other theory of who it had been made any sense at all, a theory that Booth hoped was wrong but he was treating it as fact until he had absolute proof otherwise.

To adequately protect the site and the people working it, he had to assume that the killer or killers had returned to the scene of the crime and, considering that they had already committed mass murder, he really didn't see them having a problem with doing whatever it took to keep from getting caught. It sent chills down his spine to remember how close they had gotten last night without being spotted. That could not happen again, he just wasn't sure how to prevent it considering they were surrounded by thousands of acres of forest.

"Radio Evans back and tell them to double time it back here," Booth ordered absently, his eyes moving over the rapidly darkening sky. The rain was a couple of hours behind its predicted arrival time but it was definitely on its way and soon. If the team was going to pick up a trail, they would have done it by now and there was no sense in his men getting caught in the gathering storm if they had a choice. Without comment, Van Buren immediately made radio contact with Evans and relayed the order. Booth used those few minutes to prioritize the rest of his day in his head.

The first order of business was finishing with up the road crew so he could send them on their way. Before dismissing the crime scene techs, Booth had had them dust all of the equipment that had been tampered with for prints but, considering the number of people who had openly acknowledged that they had worked on it, he wasn't holding out any great hopes they would get any usable prints at all. He certainly wasn't counting on them finding anything that would give them an epiphany regarding the identity of the saboteur so he had to rely on his skill at reading people and interview everyone involved.

He had already interviewed six of the nine man road crew and had gotten only the expected nervousness of normal, hardworking people being questioned by the FBI. Sweets had sat in on the interviews and had also spoken with them in a more casual setting and he agreed with Booth's assessment. So far, no one they had spoken to had displayed the characteristics of a psychopath. But then again, according to Sweets, psychopaths were extremely good at appearing normal so who the hell knew for sure? All he knew was that his gut wasn't warning him about anyone he had interviewed so far. "I need to talk to Bones then I'm going back to base camp to finish interviewing the road crew so they can be on their way," Booth told Van Buren.

"Is the guard duty rotation ready for the next couple of days?" Van Buren asked, his mind also going over what he needed to accomplish today.

"Angela's handing it out right now. She'll give you a copy," Booth said just as Angela approached, a copy of the aforementioned schedule at the ready.

"Here you go," she told Van Buren cheerfully, passing him the papers in her hand. "Your assigned times have been highlighted on this schedule. Don't lose it and don't be late," she warned. Pulling a thicker sheaf of papers off of her clipboard, she extended them toward the amused Van Buren. "As a supervisor, you'll need a copy of the master list so here you go."

Booth could only shake his head in wonder. Just yesterday, he would have thought scatterbrained and flaky were appropriate descriptions of Angela but in half a day, she had blown that impression out of the water. Only someone highly intelligent, organized and very disciplined would have been able to adapt to this scenario so quickly and carry it out so flawlessly. Yeah, he had known Angela was intelligent because of the Angelator and her work with Brennan but he had never really lumped her in with the rest of the squints, not until today, anyway. He was beginning to think that Angela, much like Brennan, hid much of herself behind that bohemian exterior, only allowing the world to see what she wanted them to see. It was kind of humbling to realize in just a few hours that he might have been misreading someone so badly for so long.

"Thank you," Van Buren said graciously.

"Yeah, whatever," she returned, barely sparing Van Buren another glance before turning to Booth. "Lunch should be here in about 20 minutes so I had the boys set up a table the Talberts sent over in the greenhouse since it's going to start raining any time. Bren is not a happy camper that "unqualified personnel are going to be allowed access to such a sensitive area"," Angela breezed on, glancing at her clipboard to give him direct quotes, her voice full of laughter. "She made Hodgins and the interns rope off a "suitable perimeter" around the grave and said to tell you that "unauthorized access will not be permitted". I warned everyone not to trespass but some of your people just aren't the sharpest knives in the drawer," she shook her head sadly and patted his arm consolingly in commiseration, "so you might want to remind them because Bren is in a really bad mood and it could get ugly if they forget," she finished with a twinkle in her eyes and a very self satisfied smirk on her face.

_Okay, so maybe he hadn't misjudged her so badly after all. _She was obviously having a ball, playing at being his personal assistant being her choice of entertainment for the day. He had no idea why she would find it so entertaining and trying to figure out how Angela's mind worked always made his head hurt so he decided it really didn't matter. Regardless of why she was doing it, she was doing a good job and deserved his thanks. "I'll take care of it. Thanks, Angela."

"Always glad to stir things up a little, Studly," she retorted with a wicked grin then she was off again, leaving a grinning Van Buren staring after her, shaking his head. He thought he was beginning to understand what Booth had meant by the FBI not being ready for Angela and he was in full agreement. He would be willing to bet that it would take her less than a month to either take over the agency or cause so much chaos that it collapsed from within, neither of which was a fitting end for the bureau he was so proud to be a part of.

Booth was already headed toward the greenhouse to judge Brennan's level of agitation for himself. He wasn't surprised she didn't want her now completely protected scene invaded by agents but seeing as the greenhouse and the mobile lab were the only structures available and his men couldn't stand out in the rain and eat, he didn't have a lot of options. He had been on his way to talk to her about it himself when Van Buren had stopped him with a question and Angela had simply beaten him to the punch. He strongly suspected that Angela was exaggerating Brennan's reaction because his Bones was nothing if not logical. He had already stopped by the greenhouse a couple of times today and knew Brennan wasn't in the greatest of moods but with a rational explanation, he expected her to vent a little then settle down.

Striding into the greenhouse, his eyes swept over the well defined boundary that had been erected with metal stakes and yellow crime scene tape and his lips curved in amusement. Considering that the crime scene team was gone, he wondered where the squints had gotten the official, yellow tape but he wasn't going to ask because, in this case, he suspected ignorance was bliss. Gingerly stepping over the knee high border, he approached the grave, glad to hear the interns chattering away, apparently having made some strides in coming to terms with what they were doing. Brennan appeared to be completely absorbed in her task of slowly brushing the dirt away from a skull, but as he came closer, her head snapped around as if her radar had alerted her that her perimeter had been breached. Her narrow eyed glare of annoyance faded the instant she saw him and her face softened into a smile. "Hi," she said, sitting back on her heels and looking up at him.

"Hi," he squatted at the side of the grave, returning her smile. "It looks like you're really starting to make some progress here," he said, his eyes moving over the rapidly enlarging hole she and the interns were kneeling in. They had moved the remains of the second victim to the lab a couple of hours earlier for Cam to get started on identification and had partially uncovered a third skeleton that even Booth could identify as a child.

"Some," Brennan allowed but Booth could feel her frustration at the need to go so slowly. She understood the need to preserve evidence better than most and, on a purely scientific dig, she was capable of infinite patience. She would actually have enjoyed the slow pace, savoring the excitement, eagerly anticipating each glimpse of another time, another peoples' lives as it was revealed piece by piece. But this case wasn't about scientific research or another time that could be viewed in the abstract, it was about horrible, evil people and the terrible things they do and it was all too real. In these circumstances, everyone here just wanted to get those children out of that grave so they could get on with finding out who had done this terrible thing and make sure they never did it again.

"Can you take a break?" Booth asked softly. "I need to talk to you," he added when she hesitated, clearly reluctant to stop working.

"Okay," she nodded with a sigh, laying her tools aside and standing up. "Keep working and I'll be right back," she told the interns who all nodded eagerly. Carefully stepping around Daisy, who had, once again, positioned herself beside Brennan, she approached Booth, taking his outstretched hand and allowing him to help her out of the grave. "What did you need to talk to me about?" she queried but their attention was drawn to a commotion at the door before Booth could answer. Brennan frowned in annoyance as the other FBI agents came trooping in carrying covered trays of food and a cooler of drinks.

"Oh, thank God, food. I'm absolutely famished," sighed Vincent behind them.

"Yeah, I'm starving, too," agreed Wendell.

"Just as our souls shrivel and die from lack of sustenance, so will our bodies," intoned Fisher drolly.

"I suppose I could eat," piped in Daisy.

"I think the kiddies are ready for lunch," Booth whispered, leaning close and grinning with amusement at the interns transparent attempts to remind Brennan that they needed nourishment. He couldn't hold back his laughter at the Gee, ya think look Brennan gave him before turning back to the interns who were all four gazing up at her hopefully.

"Take half an hour for lunch," she ordered and Booth laughed harder as he watched the four of them launch into motion, carefully but hastily climbing out of the hole and eagerly heading toward the food. His amusement was halted mid laugh as Brennan turned on her heel and started toward the exit.

"Whoa," he reached out and caught her arm, halting her progress. "Where are you going?" he asked when she looked at him questioningly.

"While everyone's eating, I'm going to examine the latest set of remains if Cam has finished her identification," she explained patiently.

"No," he said firmly, softening the refusal with a smile.

"Excuse me?" she questioned with a disdainful, raised brow that might have intimidated him at one time. Now, he thought it was adorable.

"You need to eat," he explained but she shook her head, her patience rapidly waning. She had too much to do to bother with eating.

"I'm not hungry," she denied, turning back toward the door.

"Bones," Booth said softly, catching her other arm as well and turning her back to face him. He knew she hadn't eaten at all yet today and he doubted she had consumed anything yesterday except a couple of the cardboard, energy bars that were stocked in the mobile lab. He had fallen down on his job yesterday, not making sure she took the time to eat, but he wasn't going to repeat that mistake today. He _was_ going to win this one. "You have to eat," he reiterated, fighting a smile at the stubborn set of her mouth. "Besides if you go to the lab now, I'll just have to follow you and talk to you while you're examining the remains. You know how much you hate that," he teased and her mouth softened, almost but not quite curving into a smile.

Brennan sighed at how well this man knew her. She did hate it when people talked to her during an examination, finding it distracting and annoying. Mostly, she could just tune them out but she had lost the ability to ignore anything about Booth years ago, especially when he was in the vicinity. Looking at the sexy smile on his lips, the concern in his warm brown eyes, she knew she was going to give in and was a little disgusted with her own lack of control where he was concerned. The fact that he could change her course of action, at work, no less, with a few words or a look was kind of pathetic and would have scared the crap out of her if she hadn't trusted him implicitly. But she did trust him, so it just gave her a warm, glowing feeling inside to do something to make him happy. That being said, she didn't want him to know just how weak she was when it came to him or to get any cockier than he already was so, yeah, she was going to give in but she was going to make him work for it first.

"Come on, Bones," he said softly, stepping even closer, his hand reaching up to stroke a finger up and down her cheek. "The remains will still be there later. All I'm asking is that you take thirty minutes and have lunch with me. Please?" he cajoled, his voice taking on a husky timber that sent shivers down her spine, his finger tracing over her lower lip, his eyes darkening and starting to smolder.

_Well, damn, how was she supposed to hold out against that?_ If he kept touching her like that and using that tone of voice on her, she couldn't imagine not giving him anything he wanted. "Okay," she whispered and was rewarded with a brilliant smile that actually made her heart flutter. Sliding an arm around her shoulders, Booth gave her a quick squeeze and turned her toward the table holding the food, his hand sliding from her shoulder to its customary resting place on her lower back. Feeling her stiffen, he followed her gaze and started laughing when he saw how belligerently she was looking at a couple of his agents who had strayed too near her perimeter fence to suit her.

"Don't worry," he whispered in her ear, not even trying to restrain his laughter, "they're all too scared of you to cross your line."

"They'd better not," she muttered, glaring at one of the agents who actually reached out and touched the crime scene tape. As if he could sense he was being watched, the agent suddenly lifted his head and looked straight at Booth and Brennan, paling and hastily beating a retreat when he caught sight of Brennan's scowl.

"See, I told you they were afraid of you," Booth teased.

"What did you need to talk to me about?" she asked, her voice bland but she was wearing a Cheshire cat smile.

"Clark called to let you know that he would have everything you asked for this morning ready by 3," Booth got that out of the way first as he had promised Clark he wouldn't forget.

Brennan nodded, as she automatically picked up a paper plate and surveyed the array of sandwiches and chips laid out on the table. Hardly the height of healthy nutrition but, in the circumstances, providing anything more complicated was problematic to say the least. Booth certainly didn't seem to mind the selection, she noted in amusement, as he started piling sandwiches on his plate.

"What?" he demanded, catching her laughing eyes on his plate. "Hey, I'm starving. I didn't get any dinner last night or breakfast this morning and those energy bars in the lab are nasty," he continued defensively.

"I didn't say anything," she grinned, "and those energy bars are very nutritious, specially formulated to meet your dietary daily requirements with the ingestion of only three bars. They're much better for you than that over processed white bread and animal flesh swimming in preservatives," she finished in her best lecturing voice, pointing at his plate.

"Maybe," Booth conceded, "but it would be a miracle if anyone could actually choke one of those disgusting things down, much less three. And thank you so much for providing the visual I'll have in my head every time I take a bite of my sandwiches," he said in disgust, picking up one of the halved sandwiches on his plate and waving it at her.

"You're welcome," she said oh so sweetly. "And for your information, I often consume those energy bars," she informed him loftily.

"Now why doesn't that surprise me?" he drawled.

"I don't know why that doesn't surprise you," she retorted, taking the question literally. "Considering your age, Booth, you really should consider altering your diet to derive any of the positive long term effects of a healthier lifestyle," she chided and Booth rolled his eyes at the familiar refrain.

"Oh, God, not the alligator testicles again," he groaned, rolling his eyes.

Cam entered the greenhouse just in time to hear Booth's comment echo off the walls, her eyes immediately going to the partners. They were, as usual, totally focused on each other, blithely unaware of the snickers and the open mouthed stares their rather loud conversation was generating in the other FBI agents. Glancing around, she saw that the rest of the Jeffersonian team was calmly filling their own plates, having witnessed enough real explosions between the duo that their interest wasn't even drawn by the commonplace bickering. The other agents, on the other hand, appeared to be fascinated, their eyes following the pair's every move, the air of speculation almost palpable.

"Whatcha doing?" inquired Angela, walking up beside Cam, crossing her arms over her chest and following Cam's eyes to Booth and Brennan. "Ah, I see," Angela nodded, grinning, her eyes following the still bickering pair who had finished with the food and were now settling themselves on the ground a considerable distance from everyone else.

"Do they always fight like that?" asked a male voice and Cam and Angela turned toward Van Buren who had approached so quietly they hadn't heard him.

"They're not fighting," scoffed Angela with a grin.

"They're not?" Van Buren blinked in surprise. Granted, the encounter hadn't appeared to be harsh but it had seemed somewhat heated for a normal discussion.

"No," confirmed Cam, smiling at Van Buren. "Believe it or not, that's what passes for conversation between the two of them."

"Seriously?" asked Van Buren, smiling back at Cam, his eyes lingering on her face, his smile widening to a grin when Cam actually blushed.

"Yeah," confirmed Angela, her eyes moving speculatively from the blushing, flustered Cam to the grinning Van Buren who was eyeing the pathologist like she was the tastiest morsel he had seen in quite some time. "Trust me, if they ever have a real fight, you'll know it," she assured Van Buren, who nodded but didn't take his eyes off of Cam.

"If that ever happens, just duck for cover and stay out of the way," Cam warned, her eyes meeting and holding warm, green ones. "It never ends well when someone tries to get between them."

"I'll have to remember that," Van Buren murmured, his eyes narrowing at the flicker of emotion in Cam's eyes, getting the feeling that she wasn't just referring to getting between the two in a fight.

"You should do that. It could save your life," Angela piped in cheerfully, quickly deciding she had better things to do than stand around and watch those two make puppy dog eyes at each other. "I'll see you two later," she added, rolling her eyes when neither of her companions even glanced at her. Grabbing a sandwich and a bottle of water, she headed back out the door. She had things to do and men with guns and badges to boss around.

"Looks like you're really training the junior squints well, Bones," Booth said, his voice full of laughter.

"What?" Brennan's head lifted and she blinked at him in confusion, her fork pausing in mid air. "What are you talking about?" she asked.

Grinning, Booth raised a hand and pointed toward the grave. Brennan's eyes followed his extended finger to see that the interns had placed themselves in a line directly in front of her makeshift fence, glaring threateningly at anyone who even started in their direction. "I don't know what you mean, Booth," she said innocently, biting her bottom lip to keep from smiling. "They're simply enjoying their lunch." Booth snorted his disbelief and she couldn't hold the smile back any longer. "I might have stressed the importance of not contaminating the scene when Angela informed me of the necessity of using the greenhouse for meals," she shrugged.

"Yeah, Angela said you weren't happy about it," Booth grinned. "Speaking of Angela, how is it she didn't catch us in bed together this morning?"

"How do you know she didn't?" Brennan asked curiously.

"Because I can still hear," Booth snorted and Brennan's brow crinkled in confusion. "If Angela had caught us, she'd still be squealing," Booth explained, "and she sure as hell wouldn't have been able to keep her mouth shut about it all morning." Brennan had to give him that one so she nodded. "So what time did you sneak back in here to work?" he asked with a slightly raised brow.

"I did not sneak anywhere, Booth," she gasped, trying to look outraged but only succeeding in looking guilty because she _had_ sneaked. She hadn't awoken when he came to bed but had roused around 6am, unable to go back to sleep on the cramped, uncomfortable cot. Reasoning that the intruder was taken care of one way or the other since Booth was there and that it would be a much more productive use of her time to get back to work rather than toss and turn, she had slipped out of bed, dressed and made her way to the greenhouse. Booth simply looked at her steadily as his brow arched higher. "Fine," she huffed, feeling the same twinges of guilt over the fact that Booth hadn't actually told her it was okay to leave the lab that she had felt this morning. "I sneaked, okay? Does it make you happy to hear me admit it?" she demanded grouchily.

"Everything about you makes me happy, Bones," he said huskily, turning his big body so that she was blocked from the view of anyone else in the room, reaching out and lazily brushing a stray strand of hair away from her face.

"So you're not mad?" she asked cautiously, her heart rate picking up at the glittering, focused look in his eyes. She knew that look very, very well and it always meant that she was in for a very pleasurable hour or so.

"I'm not mad," her assured her, picking up a plump, ripe strawberry from the plate she had set down several minutes earlier and brushing it lightly over her lips, urging them to part and accept his offering.

Brennan closed her lips around the fruit, taking her time before gently biting down, her breath hitching at the way Booth's darkening eyes were so intently focused on her mouth. "Umm," she moaned, her eyes closing in ecstasy as she slowly savored the sweet fruit, her tongue darting out to leisurely lick the juice from her lips.

"You are an evil woman," Booth muttered thickly, barely repressing a groan at the erotic way she was consuming the strawberry, his body suddenly hard as a rock.

"Aren't you going to feed me the rest?" she asked innocently, her eyelids fluttering open.

"That would be a very bad idea," he assured her, shifting to a more comfortable position, swallowing hard when the tip of her tongue darted out to lick her lips again.

"You started it," she reminded him with a positively wicked smile.

"I know," he acknowledged, bending his head until his lips were almost touching her ear, "and if I feed you the rest of this strawberry, I'm going to drag you back to the lab and finish it," he growled, feeling the tremor that ran through her body. Meeting her rapidly darkening cerulean eyes, Booth saw how much she wanted him to do just that and his whole body clenched.

"Mind if I join you?" interrupted Hodgins, jerking them apart. Not waiting for a reply, he dropped down to sit on the other side of Brennan.

"Please feel free to join us, Hodgins," Booth invited sarcastically, shifting several times before he found a position that relived some of the pressure on his erection, wondering how the hell feeding Brennan a piece of fruit had gotten him so turned on that his whole body was almost vibrating.

"Thanks," returned Hodgins with a grin, already digging into his food.

"I should get back to work," Brennan said quietly, gathering her garbage and standing. "I'll see you later," she promised softly, meeting Booth's eyes.

"Yeah, you will," Booth answered, his eyes promising that she would be seeing _all _of him later. Nodding, she was off and, with a sigh, Booth turned to Hodgins to make polite conversation until he could walk out of here without embarrassing himself. It was going to be a very long day.


	38. Chapter 38

**Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review. Hope you enjoy this offering. T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

"Well that was a colossal waste of time," Sweets sighed, tossing his pen down on the table and sinking dejectedly down into his chair.

"Not true," argued Booth, closing the folder he had been making notes in while interviewing the last 3 men on the road crew and meeting Sweets' eyes levelly. "We now know that it's very unlikely that any of the road crew was responsible for the equipment sabotage. Add to that the fact that none of them have ties to the area and that pretty much rules them out as the murderer."

"Why would you think the murderer is a local?" asked Sweets, sitting up straight and leaning forward, his eyes alight with interest.

"I didn't say that," cautioned Booth, "but whoever messed with the equipment was able to sneak around and not be seen. Plus the intruder we had onsite this morning easily evaded five men and we didn't find a trace of him even after daylight."

"And that would indicate a prior knowledge of the area," Sweets mused slowly, linking his fingers on the table and staring at them thoughtfully. "When you put it like that, I would have to agree," he acknowledged, nodding. "So what's next?"

"I look at everyone else that had access to the equipment," Booth raised the folder he was holding in the air, waving it around a little. "Then I interview some more while we wait for Bones to finish up," he sighed, laying the folder down and opening it.

"Are you going to notify the little girl's parents this afternoon?" Sweets asked softly, taking a sip of coffee, his eyes remaining on Booth's face, knowing this was a sensitive area for the agent.

"Julie, Sweets, her name was Julie Ford," Booth snapped before he could stop himself. It was a valid question, just not one that he had the power to make. The powers that be had decided to hold off on notifications until all the bodies had been identified, citing that the media had settled down a little when they had gotten nothing of import from the PR guy and they were left with only speculation. They were certain and Booth had to agree that the instant they made the first notification, it would leak and the media would pounce, turning these parents' grief into a real circus. Despite his understanding of his superiors' reasoning, Booth was feeling really ambivalent about the decision itself.

As a parent himself, he couldn't imagine what these people had been going through for the last three years, the crushing, emotional devastation of your child simply disappearing, of not knowing if they were dead or alive. _Was it really fair of them to put these people through even one more day of that hell when they had the power to stop it? _ _Or were they still holding onto hope, despite how unlikely it was that their child would be coming home?_ _Would the real hell begin when they stripped that hope away, telling them that their child was gone forever, that they would never hear their voice again, never hold them in their arms again?_ Maybe he was just trying to justify the delay to himself but Booth had to believe that any parent would continue to hope their child was alive until presented with irrefutable evidence to the contrary and his notification would eradicate that hope, shattering their lives once again. If that was the case, he honestly didn't see the harm in letting them hold onto that hope for a couple of more days. They had the rest of their lives to grieve. "No, I'm going to wait until all the identifications have been made," he finally answered.

"I understand," Sweets nodded. "No matter when you do it, this news is going to devastate them," he mused aloud, flinching when Booth looked at him incredulously.

"Yeah, Sweets, I do know that already. And, by the way, thanks for the pep talk," Booth said sarcastically.

"Sorry," Sweets shrugged sheepishly. "You being a parent yourself, this must be a really hard case for you to work on." Ignoring the death glare Booth sent him, the psychologist bravely continued, "Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, Sweets, I don't want to talk about it," Booth snapped, opening another folder and turning his attention to the papers inside. Sweets bit his lip and silently debated on the wisdom of pushing Booth on this one. _Bad idea_, he finally decided.

"Do you want some help?" he sighed, gesturing to the stack of folders at Booth's elbow.

"No talking," Booth warned without looking up.

"No talking," agreed Sweets with a defeated sigh, eagerly reaching for the folder Booth pushed toward him.

Brennan sat back on her heels and wiped an arm across her sweating brow, reaching for her bottle of water and critically surveying the scene with satisfaction, finally beginning to feel like they were making headway. Despite the recent disturbance of the grave, the first two bodies they had removed had somehow remained almost prone, almost completely articulated. The third had been angled and thus far they had only recovered the skull and the right side of the torso. But in the last half hour, Brennan had started to see tell tale signs that they were approaching the jumbled heap of disarticulated bones that was more common in mass graves.

The disinterment process might go slightly more quickly now but once the remains were fully exhumed, it would be a labor intensive, time consuming prospect to reassemble the skeletons. A process that would need to be completed here if they weren't able to identify everyone through dental records or Angela's expert sketches. At this point, Brennan estimated that they had at least two more days of digging and it would take at least that long to reassemble the skeletons for an ID.

Lowering the water bottle from her mouth after taking a long, refreshing swig, she caught sight of her watch and silently cursed. _Crap, it was already after 4 pm and she needed to contact Clark. _ Biting her lower lip in indecision, she surveyed the interns, reluctant to leave them digging without her. She knew they were perfectly competent, none of them had made a single mistake in the last two days in these difficult circumstances and it was her own control issues that were giving her a problem but that didn't make it any easier to let go of that control.

Besides contacting Clark, she needed to examine the other two sets of remains so they could be sent to the Jeffersonian tonight and there was no way she could be two places at once. She had a decision to make. She could either let the interns stay here and work or she could make them stop and sit around uselessly for the next couple of hours while she completed her tasks. While the first option gave her a twinge of anxiety, the second was completely illogical considering that they would simply be removing soil for at least another couple of hours before they got to the remains and that in itself told her what she had to do. She was just going to have to give the interns precise instructions and trust them, something that didn't come easy to her. Recapping her water bottle and setting it aside with an inaudible sigh, she straightened her spine and cleared her throat, instantly bringing four pairs of eyes to her.

"I need to be in the lab for a while," she began, mentally calculating just how quickly she could finish in the lab and get back here. The interns immediately laid down their tools and started to stand. "No, I want you to keep working," Brennan instructed.

"Really?" gasped Daisy, looking at Brennan like she had just handed her the keys to the city.

"Yes," nodded Brennan, her eyes meeting Daisy's then moving on to each intern to make sure they were paying close attention. "You're all aware of the process, so just continue to remove the soil for Hodgins to sift through. Take your time. If you run into remains, stop immediately and come get me. Do you understand?" Each intern nodded eagerly as her eyes went from face to face. Despite her belief in their abilities, it was unbelievably difficult for Brennan to make herself stand and turn to climb out of the substantial hole they had made so far. A hand appeared in her line of vision and she looked up to see Hodgins grinning down at her. Grabbing the helping hand, Brennan allowed Hodgins to pull her up beside him.

"I'll keep an eye on them if you like, Dr. B.," he offered and Brennan nodded, touched at the offer and surprised that it actually made her feel a little better about not being there. After all, Hodgins was the resident dirt expert and the interns were digging in the dirt.

"Thanks, Hodgins," she returned gratefully, knowing she could trust him. "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"No problem," he assured her with a grin, "I was getting a little bored working by myself so I'm going to enjoy this."

"Just let them do their job, Hodgins," Brennan warned, rolling her eyes at the way he was rubbing his hands together in gleeful anticipation.

"Sure thing," he agreed cheerfully, the twinkle in his eyes making her doubt his compliance. "I promise I won't hurt or traumatize them in any way," he sighed at her doubtful look.

Deciding she didn't have time to stand here and debate the issue, she gave him a warning look and turned back toward the interns who had their heads down, trying to pretend they weren't straining to hear her and Hodgins' conversation. "Hodgins is in charge until I get back," she said firmly and turned toward the door, not waiting for the interns' nods of compliance.

"Okay, boys and girl, you heard her, you belong to me until she gets back," Hodgins cackled, turning to the interns and rubbing his hands together, his grin widening at their collective groan.

Brennan rolled her eyes at his melodrama and kept walking, knowing Hodgins might have some fun with the interns but he wouldn't really hurt them nor do anything to compromise the evidence collection. Reaching out and pulling the door to the greenhouse open, she gasped when she was immediately doused by a curtain of rain and a fierce gust of wind buffeted her body, forcing her to take a step backward. Allowing the door to swing closed, she wiped the water from her face and squeezed it from her soaked ponytail, surprised that such an intense storm was raging outside and she hadn't even realized it was raining. Granted when she was focused on her work, she tuned out her surroundings but even standing this close to the door, she could barely hear the howl of the wind because of the superior construction of Hodgins' greenhouse. Impressive, but she could study the design later. Right now, she needed to get to the lab. She didn't have an umbrella but one really wouldn't do her any good, it would be snatched out of her hands the moment she stepped out into that wind. Besides, it wasn't like she could get much wetter. Taking a deep breath, she reached for the door, only to blink in surprise when a hand covered hers on the handle. Turning her head, she looked into Hodgins' concerned, blue eyes.

"Are you sure you want to go out in that?" he asked, having seen and heard just how bad the raging storm was in the brief time the door had been open. "Maybe you should wait for it to calm down," he encouraged, feeling that since Booth wasn't here, he should step in and try to talk her out of going out into a dangerous situation. Brennan was touched by his concern but she had things to do.

"I'll be fine, Hodgins," she assured him, her voice firm and determined and he knew she would be doing what she wanted regardless of his objections. Sighing and hoping Booth wouldn't kick his ass for not stopping her, he figured he could at least offer her a little protection.

Leaning over and scooping something off a pile on the floor that Brennan hadn't noticed before, he held out a rain poncho still in its package. "At least put this on," he urged. "Please," he quickly added for good measure.

"Fine," sighed Brennan, taking the proffered poncho, tearing it open and quickly donning it, stuffing the plastic packaging in her pocket for proper disposal later. Hodgins nodded in approval and reached for the door handle to hold it open for her.

"Ready?" he asked and she nodded. "Be careful," he added and received another nod, pulling the door open and watching her disappear into the storm with trepidation, truly concerned for her safety but knowing there was nothing else he could do. Sighing, he turned back to the industrious interns, hoping for the best.

Fifteen long minutes later, Brennan fought to keep the wind from jerking the lab door out of her hand as she stepped inside. Using both hands, she finally managed to pull the door closed hard enough to latch and leaned against the counter to catch her breath, her legs shaking with the effort it had taken to fight the wind and cross the area between the greenhouse and the lab. It had taken three times as long to reach the lab as normal and the battering wind had rendered the poncho virtually useless, whipping it in all directions and allowing the driving rain to penetrate underneath, soaking her to the skin.

Cam's head lifted as the door to the lab opened, wondering who in the world would be out in this mess. She got her answer only seconds later when Brennan's hand reached up and pushed the plastic hood off of her head. Not that it had done her much good, Cam decided, noting the water streaming down her face from her soaked hair. Grabbing a couple of towels from a stack the Talbert's had thoughtfully provided for just such an occurrence, she hurried toward Brennan, biting her tongue to hold back the scolding for being out in this weather that was struggling to escape. It would be pointless, inappropriate and probably not well received. "Here you go, Dr. Brennan," she said holding out a fluffy white towel.

Brennan stripped off the poncho and hung it on one of the hooks provided for lab coats, making sure it wasn't close enough to get them wet. "Thanks, Cam," she muttered gratefully, taking the towel and blotting her wet face. Bending over, she wound the towel around her dripping hair, picked up the second towel and headed toward the bathroom, anxious to get into something dry.

In the tiny bathroom, she quickly stripped off the saturated blue jumpsuit and dropped it into a sodden heap onto the floor, looking around for the jeans she was certain she had left folded on the shelf above the toilet this morning. _They weren't there_. Blinking, her eyes thoroughly searched every inch of the minuscule space. _Still no pants_. _Okay, maybe she had left them in the other room which presented its own set of problems_. There was no way she was marching out there in her current state of undress to search for her missing pants and she shuddered at the thought of asking Cam to look around for them and the explanations that would entail. That was definitely not going to happen. _This was not good_, thought Brennan running a hand across her forehead repeatedly and pacing the confines of the small room, _but she still had options so there was no need to panic._ "Cam, can you hand me another jumpsuit, please?" she requested in relief as the answer came to her.

"Sorry, can't," Cam called back a little too cheerfully to suit Brennan. "We're all out. Angela took all of them back to the lodge to be washed."

_Well, crap, now she had a problem_, Brennan acknowledged, looking down at the tank top and pair of skimpy boy short panties that she was wearing. She was normally fully dressed under the jumpsuits but because of how hot it had gotten yesterday when they were digging and the bathroom being available for changing, she hadn't bothered this morning, opting for comfort over modesty. A choice she was now regretting but it would be pointless to dwell on it. _What was she going to do? _

Since her options were so limited, it didn't take her long to go through them. There was no way she was getting back into that waterlogged jumpsuit which, literally, left her with the clothes on her back so she would just have to work with what she had. "Cam, could you hand me a lab coat, please?" she called. Within seconds, there was a knock on the door and Cam's hand appeared with the requested coat when Brennan cracked the door open. "Thanks," she grabbed the coat and quickly closed the door. Stripping off the uncomfortably damp tank top, she dried herself off and used the second towel to blot as much moisture from the top as she could. She would prefer to leave it off entirely but there was no way she was prancing around the lab in a lab coat and panties, especially in front of Cam. She would just have to suffer through the discomfort. Quickly toweling her hair as dry as possible, she finger combed it out, slipped the damp tank top back on and donned the lab coat, studying herself critically in the tiny mirror, hoping she didn't look quite as underdressed to Cam as she did to herself. Knowing she couldn't spend the rest of the night in the bathroom, she lifted her head and opened the door.

Cam glanced up as Brennan came out of the bathroom, her eyes widening at the bare legs beneath the coat and the flash of bare thigh when the lower edges of the coat separated with every step. Her eyes flew to Brennan's face but she wasn't about to comment.

"Don't ask," Brennan muttered uncomfortably, walking to where Cam was standing with the last set of remains.

"Wasn't going to," Cam returned even more uncomfortably, crossing her arms over her chest and vowing not to glance below Brennan's face for the rest of the day.

"Do you have an ID yet?" Brennan questioned, pulling on a set of gloves, instantly slipping into work mode.

"I've narrowed it down to two possibilities," Cam sighed.

"Even with dental records?" Brennan's brow furrowed. It shouldn't be that difficult to compare dental x rays and get an ID.

"I'm using the dental records but two of the boys had no dental work whatsoever and the portable machine for dental X rays isn't working," she sighed in frustration. Brennan blinked in surprise. They had the latest, high quality equipment and it was very unusual for any of it to simply break down.

"Are you sure it wasn't tampered with?" Brennan asked, her mind instantly going to Booth's theory about their being a saboteur amongst their ranks. She didn't really see how anyone could have gotten into the lab and sabotaged any of the equipment but she trusted Booth and his gut implicitly.

"I'm sure," Cam nodded. They had all been filled in on the sabotage and intruder and warned to be careful so she knew where Brennan was coming from. "It just went kaput while I was using it," she explained, "and when I called the company hoping for an easy fix like a reset button, they explained that that particular model was being recalled for just this problem."

"Okay," Brennan nodded. "Give me a minute to talk to Clark then I'll look over the remains and see if I can identify them," Brennan offered, not liking the rushed feeling she was getting from the need to so quickly ship the bodies out.

"You can't talk to Clark. The satellite hookup is out because of the storm," Cam winced and waited for the explosion.

Brennan was beginning to feel like her hands were tied behind her back, that nothing was ever going to go right on this case. Add to that the fact that she was physically tired from lack of sleep, physically frustrated from lack of Booth and was currently standing here in her underwear and a lab coat and she had to admit that she had had better days. She was feeling just a tad out of control, not to mention extremely unprofessional and spent several long seconds convincing herself that it would serve no useful purpose for her to take her frustrations out on Cam. _She had worked in much more difficult circumstances than these_, she reminded herself, _she simply had to take care of one thing at a time, starting with checking on the interns._ Tamping down her irritation, she looked around for the two agents who were supposed to be guarding the lab and turned a questioning look on Cam. "Where are the agents?"

"Up front," snorted Cam in amusement, "they said it creeps them out to be back here." She and Brennan shared an eye roll that lightened the atmosphere considerably. "Did you need them for something?" she asked politely, eying Brennan warily, still not sure she completely safe from an explosion.

"Yes, I want to use their radio to check on the progress of the interns," Brennan started toward the front of the bus and Cam's eyes widened as the anthropologist's normal, long legged stride made the bottom of the lab coat flutter around her bare legs, making it apparent she wasn't wearing any pants underneath.

"Wait," Cam gasped, knowing there was no way the agent's weren't going to notice the flash of thigh and enjoy the show, frantically trying to come up with a tactful way to keep Brennan where she was.

"What?" Brennan asked impatiently and Cam sighed. She didn't think "I don't think Booth will like you flashing all the other agents" was overly tactful and no way in hell was she going there. Her eye fell on the medical file lying on the table and she grabbed onto it like a lifeline.

"I'll do it," she said brightly. "Why don't you take a look at the remains and see if you can ID them?" she asked desperately, shoving the medical file at Brennan and smiling brightly in the face of the look Brennan was giving her that said she was acting like she was slightly unhinged.

"Okay," Brennan said, reaching out slowly and carefully removing the folder from Cam's hands as if she were wary of making any sudden moves.

"Thanks," chirped Cam brightly, swinging on her heel and heading toward the front of the lab, rolling her eyes at her own behavior. She was a little surprised at her need to protect Brennan from what would really amount to little more than embarrassment but she owed her that and a hell of a lot more for her earlier behavior. Five minutes later, she returned to report that according to Hodgins, everything was fine, not surprised when Brennan barely spared her a glance, nodded, then turned back to her remains, giving Cam her trademark go away and let me work my magic wave. Having been on the receiving end of this phenomenon many times, Cam went.

****

Two hours later, Booth entered the mobile lab and shook the rain off of his umbrella, grateful that there had been a lull in the storm. According to the weather channel it was temporary, they would be bombarded with even more torrential downpours and damaging winds in the next couple of hours and he wanted to take this time to make sure the site was as secure as they could make it and all his people were safely tucked away before it hit. Hanging up the umbrella, he turned into the lab, his eyes immediately zeroing in on Brennan who was, not surprisingly, seated beside the pull out table, examining remains, periodically making notes in a folder on the table beside her.

"Well, it looks like the storm has calmed down some," Cam said softly from behind him and Booth turned his head toward her.

"Yeah, but it's supposed to amp back up pretty soon. You should finish up here and get back to the lodge," he advised.

"I'm ready anytime," Cam nodded. "You might want to talk to Brennan. She's determined to make an ID on the last set of remains before she leaves and that's virtually impossible considering what she has to work with."

"Cam, you should know better than that by now. Plus, she doesn't know the meaning of the word impossible," Booth chided, his eyes drifting back to Brennan, a tender smile settling on his lips.

_Oh, yeah, they were definitely involved_, Cam decided, doing an internal happy dance, desperately wanting to congratulate Booth and wish them happiness. But she was afraid that would lead to a discussion of why it hadn't happened sooner and that was a chat she wanted to avoid at all costs. "That's true," Cam conceded, "but you still might want to hurry her up. I've been trying but she just ignores me and waves me off."

"I'll take care of it," Booth grinned, pushing away from the counter and walking toward Brennan.

"Hi," he said softly and Brennan's head immediately came up, a welcoming smile lighting her face.

"Hi," she returned. "When did you get here?"

"Just now," he returned. "I came to make sure the site was secure and pick you up."

"But, Booth, I can't go anywhere," she gasped, swinging around on the stool so she was facing him, the action causing her lab coat edges to part and reveal almost the entire length of one long, slender thigh. "I have to identify these remains before they get sent to the Jeffersonian tonight," she explained but Booth had lost the ability to understand the spoken word the instant his eyes riveted on all the soft, silky skin on display. His mind instantly pictured her naked under the coat, one of his favorite fantasies, then, of course, it jumped to him peeling her out of the lab coat and what that would lead to, his gut clenching and his body beginning to harden at the vivid images. Blinking at the flush of arousal spreading across Booth's cheeks and his darkening eyes, Brennan followed his gaze to her bare thigh and gasped, jerking the lab coat back up to cover it, spinning around on the stool until her legs were under the table.

Not particularly caring for his luscious view being blocked, Booth forced his eyes up to Brennan's slightly embarrassed face which was now in profile to him. Stepping up behind her until her back was pressed against his chest, he lowered his head until his mouth was next to her ear. "What are you wearing under that lab coat?" he whispered.

"You don't want to know," she whispered back, turning her head until their faces were so close their noses bumped.

"Oh, I really, really do," he rasped fervently, fighting the urge to lean in those extra couple of inches and capture her lips with his.

"Umm, I'm going to just go wait in the car," Cam said, shifting uncomfortably at the intimate scene unfolding before her. She wasn't at all jealous but she did feel like a voyeur and she had to admit that her heart ached just a little at the intent, adoring way Booth looked at Brennan, a way he had never looked at her even during their most passionate moments, a way she was sure he never had not ever would look at any other woman besides Brennan.

"No need, Cam," Booth answered without altering his position or glancing in her direction. "You can tell me or, better yet, you can show me what you have on under that lab coat later," he promised huskily directly into Brennan's ear.

"Maybe," Brennan teased, holding his eyes.

"You can count on it," Booth returned, unable to resist nuzzling her ear with his nose before he straightened and looked at Cam. "I need about ten minutes then I'll have someone take you and the interns back to camp."

"I sent the interns back about half an hour ago. Are you telling me they didn't make it back?" Brennan broke in, looking a little concerned.

"I'm sure they're there," Booth soothed, his hand coming up to stroke up and down her back. "I didn't see them but I've been busy. I probably just missed seeing them come in. I'm sure the kiddies are fine, Baby," he smiled down at her reassuringly, not even catching his slip of the tongue.

"They'd better be, Booth," Brennan muttered, gnawing on her lower lip, "or I'll hold your agent responsible," she warned.

"If Breyer has mistreated the interns in any way, you have my heartfelt permission to kick his ass. Okay?" Booth laughed, reaching for the satellite phone to call the lodge and confirm the interns were there so she would stop worrying and settle down.

"Dr. Brennan, are you sure there's nothing I can do to help you finish up?" Cam asked Brennan yet again while Booth was making his call.

"I don't think so, Cam," Brennan sighed in frustration. "We just don't have a significant enough portion of the remains to make a positive identification."

"Okay, Bones, all of the junior squints are safely present and accounted for back at base camp," Booth told her with a grin. "Now what's the deal with the ID?" he asked, having heard the tail end of Brennan's remark. His eyes ran over the few bones laid out on the table and he honestly didn't see how anyone, even his Bones, could take such a small portion of the human body and give him an ID but he knew, given enough time and the proper equipment she could do exactly that.

"I don't have enough of the remains to give you a positive ID before they go to the Jeffersonian tonight," she admitted, sounding like she was confessing to all seven of the deadly sins.

"They're not going to the Jeffersonian tonight," Booth automatically corrected, his hand dropping to her shoulder and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "The chopper's grounded until the weather clears," he explained. "Can't you just do your DNA thingie?" he asked Cam suddenly.

"Don't you think I would already have done my DNA thingie if I could?" she snorted, rolling her eyes.

"We don't have a DNA sequencer on board, Booth," Brennan explained patiently. "They're extremely expensive so it wouldn't be cost effective to equip the mobile lab with one."

"They're also way too sensitive to be hauled around on a bus," added Cam, a little stung that Booth would think she had failed to do something so basic if she'd had the equipment to do so.

"Okay, fine," conceded Booth, running a hand through his hair. "What do you need to get me an ID?" he asked, his eyes meeting Brennan's.

"The rest of the body," she said instantly.

"And how long before we have that?"

"I expect it to take at least two more days to exhume the rest of the remains and it will take at least that long to reassemble them," she sighed.

"We can have Angela do a sketch in the morning," Cam inserted. "That is if you can spare her, Booth," she grinned.

"Believe it or not, Cam, she did a hell of a good job today," Booth admitted. "But, yeah, I'll give her back."

"Why don't we just have Clark send us a replacement for the portable dental X-ray?" Brennan asked quietly and Cam blinked, feeling like she should give herself a duh slap to the forehead.

"Good idea, Dr. Brennan," Cam admitted.

"You'll be able to use it to ID the bodies?" Booth queried.

"It will help," answered Cam, "and it will most certainly help speed the process."

"Yes, especially since the rest of the remains are unlikely to be articulated," Brennan interjected. "In a mass grave, there isn't really isn't anything separating the bodies," she explained at Booth's raised brow. "As the bodies decay, the bones shift…,"

"And they wind up in a big, jumbled pile," Booth broke in, remembering a show Brennan had made him watch on the discovery channel. Okay, she hadn't exactly made him watch it and he had actually found it very interesting once he got past the fact that those were real people in the grave and focused on the science.

"Exactly," Brennan beamed at him and he felt his chest swell with pride.

"And Clark will have one of these things just lying around?" Booth questioned.

"Yes, we have several units in the lab. It shouldn't be a problem for him to send one out," Cam answered.

"Okay, then, problem solved. We'll send Julie Ford's body to the lab in the morning, Clark can send your X-ray whatever and we'll be set," Booth rubbed his hands together with a grin.

"I want to take a closer look at those remains tonight," Brennan informed him. "Of course you do," Booth sighed. "Fine, but the storm is going to be starting up again before long and it's supposed to be even worse than before. I want everyone tucked in for the night before that happens. You have an hour," he informed her firmly.

"An hour?" she gasped, her eyes narrowing. "But, Booth, an hour isn't enough time."

"One hour, Bones," he repeated, leaning down until they were nose to nose. "I will carry you out of here kicking and screaming if I have to," he warned teasingly.

"I'd like to see you try," she hissed, glaring at him.

"If you're not ready in an hour that's exactly what you'll see," he promised, his voice full of laughter, wanting to lean down and kiss that pouting mouth so badly he could taste it. Her eyes became slits over blazing blue orbs promising retribution at a later date. Winking at her, he nuzzled her nose with his and straightened, removing himself from temptation, ignoring the look of amused indulgence Cam was giving them. Brennan immediately popped up off the stool and pushed past him, muttering under her breath. From the tone, Booth had no doubt he was the subject and the tirade was less than complimentary so he didn't even try to eavesdrop as she stomped over to where the other remains were laid out on another pull out, steel table and plopped down on a stool beside them.

"You do know she can kick your ass, don't you?" asked Cam, her eyes glowing with admiration. She had never seen anyone, even Booth, handle Brennan quite that well before.

"Yeah," Booth acknowledged, "but she won't." He sounded confident but Cam had her doubts, especially when Brennan snorted at his comment and continued to mutter under her breath. "Give me a couple of minutes to talk to my guys, Cam, then I'll have them take you to the lodge," he requested, turning on his heel and heading for the front of the bus before she could comment.

Cam's grin widened as he paused beside the irate anthropologist, tucked her hair behind her ear, then leaned down to whisper something in her ear. Brennan pretended to ignore him and ducked her head but Cam saw her biting her lower lip to hide a smile. _Those two were so darned cute together it was damned near disgusting. _


	39. Chapter 39

**Since you guys seem to be missing the smut, maybe you'll enjoy this chapter. I hope so but please let me know one way or the other. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Forty-five minutes later, Booth was sitting quietly in the lab, leaning back against the wall, his entire attention focused on Brennan, eagerly counting down the minutes until her hour was up. He had spent the first thirty minutes checking the site and grilling Hodgins about his greenhouse's ability to stand up to the elements. Hodgins had laughingly reminded him that it had been built to withstand the hostile environment of another planet and assured him it could handle a little wind and rain. Finally satisfied, Booth had returned to the lab and sent the team guarding it back to base camp an hour early, not seeing the need for all of them to be there until the next shift arrived. Everything done, he had settled himself on a stool across the aisle from Brennan, content to just sit and watch her until she was done.

And he managed just that for fifteen whole minutes. Until she casually shifted sideways on her stool and crossed those mile long legs. His eyes shifted downward and widened, his breath catching in his throat. The bottom two buttons on the lab coat had mysteriously come undone, the material sliding away from the firm, toned flesh of her thighs until they were fully revealed in all their glory. Seconds later, she reached for something, tilting up on one hip, giving him a flash of creamy buttock barely covered with tiny red panties.

"Where the hell are your pants, Bones?" he rasped huskily, his eyes riveted on the smooth swell of her hip, his gut clenching hard.

"I have no idea," she murmured absently, pulling the lighted magnifying glass closer and leaning over even further to peer down at a mandible, expanding Booth's view. "Why?" she asked curiously. Not receiving an answer after several seconds, she glanced toward Booth, catching her breath at the heat in his eyes. Following his gaze, she realized her nearly bare bottom was on full display and that Booth was definitely enjoying the view. Not that she had a problem with that but she had work to do before they could play so she reached down and flipped the coat back up to cover her legs.

Making an inarticulate sound of protest that his luscious view had been blocked, Booth dragged his eyes back up to her laughing ones. _What had they been talking about? Oh, yeah, she had no idea where her pants were._ "What? How could you not know where your pants are?" he demanded incredulously.

"Someone took them," she shrugged unconcernedly, turning back to the mandible.

"Someone stole your pants? Who?" he demanded even more incredulously.

"I don't know," she answered, sounding remarkably unconcerned.

"How could someone take your pants and you not know who it was?" sure he was completely misunderstanding this whole baffling conversation, Booth left his stool and was at her side in two strides. "Weren't you wearing them at the time?" he asked, reaching out and turning her head toward him with a hand under her chin. As utterly ridiculous as he knew it was, he couldn't help but picture someone wrestling Brennan out of her pants and running off with them, waving them victoriously above their heads. No doubt that person would be easy to locate since they would still be writhing around on the ground in pain from the ass kicking his Bones would have administered. Since he hadn't stepped over anyone like that during his rounds of the site, that scenario couldn't be accurate.

"Of course not, Booth," she snorted, laying down the mandible and turning to face him with a sigh. _He must have liked those pants a lot more than she had realized to get this upset over them going missing._

"Explain, Bones. Please," he added quickly when her eyes narrowed at the note of command in his tone.

"I left my jeans in the bathroom this morning and when I went back to get them they were gone," she explained succinctly.

Booth blinked at the explanation. _Well, that was clear enough. Very, very strange but clear. _There had to be a logical explanation for this because it made no sense whatsoever that someone would sneak into the lab to steal Brennan's pants. Relaxing now that he had the full story, Booth grinned down at Brennan, his thumb lightly rubbing over her bottom lip, "So, you've been running around dressed like this under that jumpsuit all day?" he asked, his very interested eyes sweeping down her body.

"Yes," she confirmed, holding his eyes and fighting the urge to catch that distracting thumb between her teeth on its next pass and apply suction, knowing that if she did, she sure wouldn't be getting any more work done tonight.

"Wouldn't you like to show me just exactly what you have on under there?" he asked, his voice lowering huskily, his free hand stroking lightly up and down the lapels of the lab coat.

"Yes, I would," she answered readily, giving in and allowing her tongue to flick out and caress his thumb. His eyes flared and darkened and his free hand moved to the top button on the lab coat. "But I'm not going to," she quickly clarified, covering his hand with hers and holding it in place.

"That was just mean, Bones," he complained, tipping her head further back and bending his head until their foreheads touched. "Not even a little peek?" he cajoled, his lips brushing against the corner of her mouth.

"I need to finish this, Booth," she whispered, arching her neck and turning her head, seeking firmer contact with his lips.

"Umm hmm," he murmured, catching her bottom lip between his and sucking on it lightly. Brennan's hands came up to clutch at his shoulders, her mouth opening on a low moan, inviting him to deepen the kiss.

An invitation that he immediately accepted, his hand sliding into her hair to cup the back of her head, his lips nudging hers further apart, his tongue stealing into her mouth to slide silkily against hers. He allowed himself several long, long minutes of exploring every inch of her mouth, savoring her sweet taste, her breathy, little moans going straight to his gut and forming a hard knot of need. His hand involuntarily contracted in her hair and he knew it was time to stop. He forced himself to pull back from the kiss, fighting the urge to just let go and devour her on the spot.

A fight he almost lost when she whimpered and followed his retreat, catching his bottom lip between her teeth and tugging gently. With a low moan, his hand fisted in her hair and he kissed her like he wanted to, hungrily, urgently, like he never wanted to stop. Brennan moaned, kissing him back just as urgently, just as hungrily, her nails scraping along the nape of his neck. Shuddering, Booth tore his mouth away from hers and stepped back out of her reach, knowing if she touched him again, she would definitely be finished with work for the night. Breathing hard, he watched as her eyelids flickered open, her beautiful cerulean eyes cloudy and unfocused.

Brennan's eyes opened to see Booth standing at least three feet away from her, his hot, brown eyes eating her up and it took her a long moment to understand what had just happened. It took her even longer to realize where they were and why Booth had pulled away. Blinking, she tamped down on the desire to say the hell with it, rip his clothes off and crawl all over him and concentrated on getting her choppy breathing and pounding heart under control. Calling on every ounce of self control she possessed, she gave Booth a longing, lingering look and, without a word, turned back to her examination.

Also, without a word, Booth went back to his stool, knowing it was imperative that he keep his distance until they both cooled off a little, telling himself to think of something else. But he couldn't think about anything else, couldn't force his eyes away from her. His mind was swimming with images of what she was wearing under that lab coat, of what he wanted to be doing to and with her, every shift of position giving him flashes and glimpses and even a few long, leisurely looks at soft, smooth flesh that his hands were physically aching to touch. _God, she was making him crazy without even trying._ His entire body was rigid, his gut clenching almost painfully with every whisper of material sliding across her skin, his impossibly hard erection growing unbelievably harder and throbbing in tandem to his heartbeat with every erotic image parading through his head. Jaw tightly clenched, a fine sheen of perspiration dotting his forehead with the effort he was exerting to keep from jumping up, stripping her naked and taking her where she sat, he reminded himself of why it was so important that she finish her work. And while he was about to go up in flames, she appeared to be completely absorbed in her examination of the remains, seemingly unaffected by their earlier encounter or the waves of lust rolling off of him.

But Booth knew better. He hadn't missed the flushed face, the raspy, little catches in her breathing, the way her nipples peaked under the lab coat, the heat in her eyes as she kept stealing covert glances at him, the slight tremor in her hands as she handled the remains. She hadn't cooled off any more than he had and just knowing that made him even hotter. Despite his best efforts, he had just about reached his limits of control. He had given her an hour to examine the remains and he would honor that but then, look out, because she was his for the rest of the night and he was going to very much enjoy acting out all the lustful fantasies spinning around in his head.

Brennan shot Booth a sideways look from beneath her lashes and shivered at the focused, intent look on his face, feeling his hot eyes roaming over every inch of exposed skin like a physical caress. The tip of her tongue flicked out to moisten suddenly dry lips and those blazing, brown eyes immediately focused on her mouth, darkening to almost black, a low, husky moan vibrating from his throat. Swallowing an answering whimper, Brennan unobtrusively pressed her thighs together, trying to ease the ache that had settled in her core while he was kissing her and had only intensified every time she had felt his hungry gaze sweep over her.

Booth's heated gaze left her mouth and slowly slid downward, lingering on the hint of cleavage visible in the deep vee of the lab coat collar, his hands clenching and unclenching on his thighs as if he was fighting the urge to reach for her, his breathing becoming choppy and labored. Brennan's breasts swelled and her nipples tightened, the soft cotton of her tank top feeling abrasive against their super sensitive tips, the knot of need in her belly coiling even tighter. Unable to hold back a low, needy moan, she forced her eyes away from Booth and gently laid down the mandible, her hands shaking so badly she was afraid she might drop it. Fortunately, she had already finished her examination, she had only been double checking her findings.

Without conscious thought, Booth was on his feet the instant the mandible touched the table and standing behind her a heartbeat later. "Time's up," he growled into her ear, his hot, open mouth already sliding down the side of her neck, pausing to suck at the pulse frantically pounding there. "If you're not done, you'd better tell me now," he urged, his hands sliding around her waist and flattening against her abdomen, pulling her back against him.

"I'm done," she moaned, tilting her head to the side to give him better access.

"Trust me, baby, we're nowhere near done. We're just getting started," he breathed into her ear, his tongue lazily tracing its delicate shell.

"Promises, promises," Brennan rasped, arching her back and lifting her arms over her head, reaching for him. With a husky laugh, he avoided her hands and spun her stool around until she was facing him, his hands gently grasping her arms and pulling her to a standing position, immediately starting to walk her backward.

"What are you doing?" Brennan asked in confusion, just as she was brought up short against a counter. Booth's big hands almost spanned her waist as he easily lifted her to perch on the counter.

"That's better," he said in satisfaction, one hand sweeping her bottom forward to the edge of the counter, stepping closer and settling himself comfortably in the open vee of her thighs. "Now," his hand tangled in her hair and tilted her head upward, his forehead drifting down to rest against hers. "I do believe you owe me a look at what's under here," his free hand toyed with the top button on the lab coat, his smoldering brown eyes holding hers.

"I don't know, Booth," she teased, bumping his nose against hers, arching her neck to plant whisper light kisses on his lips. "I'm not sure you can handle it," she whispered, her hands stroking up and down his chest, her husky tone and the heat in her eyes belying her doubtful words.

_God, he loved it when she let go enough to get all teasing and playful on him._ "There's only one way to find out," he laughed huskily, the purely predatory look in his eyes sending a shiver of anticipation down Brennan's spine. Holding his eyes, she nodded and leaned back, her arms extended behind her to support her torso, her eyes challenging him to do his worst.

Without breaking eye contact, Booth deftly slipped the three buttons free of their holes and parted the edges of the lab coat, slowly pushing it off of her shoulders and down her arms, urging her to shed it completely and resume her position before dragging his gaze from her darkening blue eyes and slowly skimming downward. His breath stalled in his throat, his heart stuttered in his chest and his entire body clenched and began to throb as his eyes followed the graceful arch of her throat, down to the lush mounds of her firm breasts, their pebbled tips clearly visible through the thin, tiny white tank top that molded them so lovingly. His hands clenched into fists on the counter of either side of her hips as his eyes moved lower, over the tank top that stopped a couple of inches above her belly button, over the silky, soft toned abdomen that he badly wanted to reach out and stroke. Lower still, to that tiny red excuse for panties that barely covered the gates to heaven.

"_God, baby_," he moaned gutturally, unable to drag his eyes away from her beautiful body, reaching out a shaking hand to lightly trace over the smooth skin of her abdomen, loving the way the muscles quivered and jerked under his stroking fingers. Lowering his head, his lips brushed her shoulder and settled more firmly, leaving a string of hot, openmouthed kisses across her collarbone and moving lower. A low whimper brought his head up and Booth's gut tightened painfully as his eyes flew to Brennan's face. She looked utterly abandoned and so damned sexy that it made him ache to his back teeth. Her head was thrown back, eyes closed, her bottom lip caught between her teeth to hold back the sexy little whimpers that made him crazy, her legs moving restlessly against his hips, her torso arching toward his hands. Without conscious thought, Booth's hands reached for her, clenching on her waist and slamming her against his hard chest, his mouth already opening over hers.

"_Yes_," moaned Brennan into Booth's open, voracious mouth, her hands eagerly reaching for him, tunneling under his t-shirt and pushing it upward, desperately wanting both of them naked. Booth groaned at the feel of her hands on his skin, his hands working under her tank top and sliding upward, loving the satiny, smooth feel of her skin. Brennan moaned and arched her back as Booth's hands finally reached her straining breasts, cupping and shaping them in his big hands, the rough pads of his thumbs rubbing firmly over the aching tips. She felt like every nerve ending in her body was alive and throbbing hotly, every stroke of his hands, every brush of his lips against her skin sending wave after wave of sensation skittering along those already overloaded pathways. She wanted his hands and mouth all over her bare body, she wanted him inside of her and she felt like she might spontaneously combust if she didn't get it soon.

Booth growled deep in his throat, the primitive sound lost in Brennan's avid mouth as her legs wrapped around his hips, her hands lowering to clutch at his hips, straining to get closer. His aching erection settled against her center and, God, he could feel the scorching heat even through layers of clothing. Shuddering, he peeled her tank top upward, urging her to raise her arms and reluctantly dragged his mouth away from hers to peel it over her head.

"WILL YOU OPEN THE DAMNED DOOR ALREADY?" echoed furiously from outside, freezing Booth and Brennan with her tank top halfway up her arms. "Come on, guys, I'm drowning out here," yelled Hodgins, setting up a heavy pounding against the door.

"Son of a bitch," snarled Booth, jerkily pulling the tank top back down Brennan's arms and tenderly smoothing it in place.

"_No,_" Brennan whimpered in protest, dropping her head to rest on his heaving chest, her hands clutching at his t-shirt. Booth sure as hell knew how she felt, he wanted to sit down and cry like a baby. No, actually, he wanted to punch Hodgins a couple of times but that wouldn't really be appropriate or fair, he tried to convince himself as his hands gently smoothed over her hair. With a regretful sigh, he cupped her face and tilted it upward, his thumbs stroking her cheeks, his forehead resting against hers.

"I'm sorry, baby. I didn't mean for us to get that carried away here," he sighed and she nodded, biting her lower lip, not sure she could speak without screaming out her frustration. "Hold your horses, Hodgins," he snapped loudly as the pounding continued.

"We should let him in," Brennan urged huskily.

"Or we could just leave him out there to drown," Booth muttered darkly, unable to hold back a chuckle as Brennan's head tilted to the side as if she were actually considering it. "I'm just kidding, baby," he sighed, "kind of, but I will get you alone later tonight and I swear to God, I will shoot the first person who even thinks about interrupting us," he promised fervently.

"I'm good with that," Brennan unexpectedly agreed and Booth had to laugh at the menace in her voice. Dropping a light kiss on her lips, he reluctantly released her and headed toward the door.

"I'm coming, Hodgins," he yelled at the unabated pounding on the door. Reaching the door, he turned his head, his eyes running over the picture of tousled, sexy, barely dressed Brennan still sitting on the counter, breathing hard. "Um, Bones," he said and she blinked at him. "I'm really enjoying the view, but you might want to put the lab coat back on before I open the door," he suggested, grinning at her shocked gasp and horror stricken face that she hadn't even realized what she was, or rather wasn't, wearing. Sliding off of the counter to stand on shaky legs, she jerkily pulled on the lab coat, fumbling with the buttons, nodding at Booth when she finally got them all done up. Resting a hip against the counter, she tried to smooth her hair into some kind of order, while bringing her breathing under control.

"What the hell is up with you locking people out in the rain?" Hodgins snapped, pushing past Booth as soon as the door was opened. Jerking off the rain poncho and hanging it on a hook by the door, he grabbed one of the towels off the counter and began to briskly rub it over his face and hair. "No offense, Dude, but you might want to talk to Sweets about that because, seriously, you need help," he grouched, his voice muffled by the towel.

"Can it, Hodgins," Booth growled, crossing his hands over his chest and glaring at the entomologist.

"Hey, I'm just saying," protested Hodgins, straightening and tossing the towel on the counter, returning the glare. "I mean, you tell me to be here in an hour or get left and then you lock me out in a freaking monsoon so you'll have to excuse me if I'm a little confused," he continued snarkily.

"Monsoons are seasonal winds of the Indian Ocean and only occur in Asia, Hodgins, so your classification is inaccurate," Brennan piped in.

"Yeah, thanks Dr. B., but I gotta say it doesn't make me feel a bit better that Booth tried to drown me in a nonmonsoon while he was too busy doing who the hell knows what to open the door," Hodgins replied, swinging around to face Brennan. His eyes widened at her tousled hair, her red, swollen lips, her slumberous eyes and he instantly knew exactly what Booth had been doing. _Oops._

"I did not try to drown you, Hodgins," Booth objected in irritation, but his voice said that situation could change at any time.

"Let's just forget it," Hodgins offered quickly. "Sorry, man," he told Booth quietly with an apologetic wince, "and you can disregard that whole getting help thing," he expanded generously.

"Well, gee, Hodgins, I'm glad you don't think I need help because you know I was going to get right on that," Booth snarked back, frustration riding him hard. Thankfully, two wet, grumbling FBI agents entered the lab before Hodgins could snap back and five minutes later they were heading toward the SUV, all three of them very much looking forward to getting to the lodge for a few hours of peace and quiet.


	40. Chapter 40

**Musie was feeling a little playful today but I promise some satisfaction in the next chapter. LOL. As always, I appreciate each and every review. Please keep them coming.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Chapter 40

Brennan followed Hodgins into the lodge feeling much more comfortable since her overnight bag had still been in the SUV and she had been able to pull on a pair of yoga pants and a sweatshirt on the way over, ignoring the odd looks Hodgins kept shooting her way. She was fairly certain it had been physically painful for him to hold back his questions about why she wasn't wearing any pants but he hadn't asked and she hadn't volunteered, stifling her amusement as Booth kept snapping at him to keep his eyes forward as she changed in the backseat.

With only one glance, Brennan immediately determined that the lodge was much more luxurious than she had been led to expect. She followed Hodgins down a short entryway that opened into a huge great room with high, exposed beam ceilings. Looking around with interest, she quickly cataloged a minutia of details. A stone fireplace on the far wall was big enough for a grown man to stand up in and a fire was blazing cheerfully, knocking the chill and dampness of the rain from the air. Clusters of oversized, comfortable looking sofas and chairs were scattered around the room making up several semi private conversation areas. The décor was warm and cheery and there wasn't a mounted dead animal head in sight. Brennan was impressed.

"Where is everyone?" Booth asked, walking over and setting the two overnight bags he was carrying at the bottom of the stairway leading to the second floor.

"I'm guessing that way," Hodgins pointed toward the back of the lodge from which suddenly came a burst of raised voices.

Raising a brow, Booth nodded and strode toward the kitchen, pushing open the swinging door that separated the rooms and walking into utter chaos. Five of his agents stood just inside the back door, so soaked that large puddles of water were quickly forming at their feet, their hair and clothing covered with flecks and chunks of something white, their teeth chattering with cold. Mrs. Talbert was bustling around, ordering them out of their shirts and handing out huge, fluffy white towels for them to dry themselves off. Mr. Talbert was at the counter busily setting out a row of cups and filling them with steaming coffee, presumably for his cold men. The rest of the crew, with the exception of Daisy and Van Buren, whom he didn't see, were on the other side of the room, clustered around and arguing with an obviously irritable Angela.

"What the hell?" breathed Hodgins, pushing past Booth and surveying the scene with interest.

"What?" asked Brennan, squeezing between Hodgins and Booth, blinking in surprise at the under dressed agents.

"I have no idea," sighed Booth, his hands resting on his hips, hoping with all his heart it wasn't a problem that would cancel out his plans for the evening but with the way his luck had been running, he wouldn't count on it. "But I'm going to find out. I'll be right back," he told Brennan before striding toward his men. Brennan nodded, her eyes following his retreat until her attention was caught by Angela's raised voice.

"You know, Fisher, I appreciate your selfless offer to share your room with me, Daisy or Cam but I suggest you file those little fantasies under never gonna happen and move on," she snapped. She stiffened and her eyes narrowed dangerously as she thought she caught the words spank bank in his mumbled reply but she _so_ didn't want to know if that was what he had actually said so she moved on to the next ingrate who was giving her a hard time.

"Uh oh," murmured Hodgins, easily recognizing the signs that Angela had just about had all she was going to take. She was about to blow and it wasn't going to be pretty for anyone inside the blast radius when she did. Without another word, he took off to try to contain the damage. Seeing the concern on his face, Brennan followed.

"Frankly, Simpson, I don't give a crap that Breyer snores and steals the covers or even how you know that. We've all got our little problems so…," Angela began.

"We've had to share a room on assignment before," Simpson quickly interrupted, not liking the speculative glances coming his way.

"Well there you go, then. You've shared a room before and you both survived so just suck it up and deal with it," she advised before swinging around to face Cam. "Do we really need to go there, Cam?" she queried with a raised brow.

"Umm, no," Cam replied decisively, absolutely certain she didn't want to hear what this extremely snarky, bitchy Angela had to say about her objections to sharing a room with Daisy.

"Good," Angela nodded in satisfaction. "Anyone else?" she cast a baleful look over the now silent assemblage but no one opened their mouths.

"What's going on?" asked Hodgins quietly.

"We were having a wet t-shirt contest and it got a little out of hand," Angela snapped before she could stop herself, instantly regretting it when she identified the questioner.

"Really?" asked Brennan in surprise. "Who won?" She turned and eyed the "contestants" in a clinical assessment of their attributes that had them squirming under her gaze within seconds. Hearing snickers and outright laughter break out all around her, she turned back to Angela. "What?" she blinked in confusion.

"No, Sweetie, we weren't really having a wet t-shirt contest," Angela explained apologetically, trying to control her own twitching lips, feeling the tension in the group drop considerably with Brennan's innocent remarks. Even the very unhappy with her newly assigned roommate Cam was smiling.

"Oh, I see. You were being facetious," Brennan acknowledged.

"Yeah, kind of," sighed Angela, knowing she hadn't been trying to be funny, she had been being a bitch but, God, this had to be the whiniest bunch of people on the face of the planet when they weren't getting their way. "I'm sorry, Hodgins, I didn't mean to snap at you," she apologized sincerely.

"It's okay," he shrugged, smiling softly. "What's going on?"

"Apparently the roof on the cabin where the agents were staying was damaged by the wind earlier today and the ceiling collapsed on them when it got saturated," Booth explained quietly, coming up behind Brennan.

"Was anyone injured?" Brennan asked in concern, turning to face him, her hand automatically going to his arm.

"No, they're just cold and wet," Cam answered quickly.

"And homeless," sighed Angela. "And unbelievably whiny," she added under her breath.

"Hey," at least three of the ingrates objected and Angela's eyes narrowed.

"Whoa," said Booth calmly before anyone got all riled up again. "Everyone who doesn't absolutely need to be in here right now, clear out," he ordered firmly, his eyes roving over the group and they immediately began to melt away.

"Agent Booth, I can't tell you how sorry I am about that ceiling collapsing," Mr. Talbert appeared at Booth's side, apologizing profusely and running a hand through thick salt and pepper hair. "We haven't used those cabins in three years so maybe I missed something during maintenance," he mused aloud, practically wringing his hands in agitation.

"It's all right, Mr. Talbert," Booth assured the older man. "No one was hurt and you can't be held responsible for the weather. You're doing us a huge favor by allowing us to use your camp and we really appreciate it."

"It's the least we can do, Agent Booth. We were responsible for those children and we let them down so anything that you need, you just let me know and it's yours." Mr. Talbert offered earnestly, his face and voice full of guilt, pain and absolute defeat.

"Thank you," Booth said simply and the older man nodded. Booth honestly felt bad for the suffering the Talberts' had been through for the last three years. They had been looked at suspiciously by the locals, the press, the parents of the missing children; hell the whole nation had regarded them as suspects when the children disappeared. They had almost lost their livelihood which also happened to be their home and they had to have suffered pangs of guilt and responsibility. They seemed genuine in their eagerness to help and Booth honestly didn't think they were involved but the bottom line was they hadn't been completely cleared and until they were, they were still suspects, no matter how nice they were.

"Now, would you and your friends like some soup?" Mr. Talbert queried, his face brightening.

"Mr. Talbert, I would love some soup," Booth answered with so much enthusiasm that the others grinned. "Mr. Talbert, this is Dr. Brennan," he pulled Brennan forward with a hand on her arm. "Bones, this is Mr. Talbert."

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Talbert," Brennan shook his hand.

"Please call me Ben, Dr. Brennan, everyone does. I've been telling Agent Booth that all day," Ben grinned good naturedly and Booth quickly repeated the introductions with Hodgins.

"I'm starving, too," Hodgins admitted, leaning forward to shake hands with their host. "And please call me Jack."

"Hungry?" Booth asked Brennan, brushing her hair over her shoulder and smiling softly down at her.

"A little," she admitted, returning the smile.

"Why don't you all sit down and I'll grab the soup," Ben urged, turning toward the stove. Less than five minutes later, they were all seated, digging hungrily into fragrant, steaming bowls of chili and vegetable soup.

"This is really good," praised Brennan after the first bite. Booth and Hodgins made noises of agreement around mouthfuls of chili and Ben beamed with pride.

"I'll be sure to tell Tabitha you liked it," he assured them, placing plates of cornbread and crackers on the table. "I need to go check on your men, Agent Booth, but there's plenty more on the stove. There's fruit and apple pie on the counter for dessert. You all just take your time and help yourselves." With a murmured round of thanks, he was out the door.

"Where are your men?" Brennan asked, looking around.

"Mrs. Talbert took them upstairs so they could take a shower," Booth responded, savoring the spicy taste of the chili and anticipating apple pie for desert. "So, Angela, what was going on with the riot earlier?" he asked quietly, his mind turning back to work.

"Since the other cabin is now unusable, we have to fit them in here at the lodge," she sighed and Booth nodded. "But it means that everyone will have to share a room." Already having done the math, Booth nodded again. "Apparently none of your men trust each other, Booth, because when I started handing out room assignments, they all acted like they expected to get murdered in their sleep," she continued, her voice rising in irritation.

"They really did," agreed Cam. "I have to tell you, Booth, that I'm a little underwhelmed by the men the bureau is choosing to hand guns and badges to these days," she grinned.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Cam," Booth snorted into his coffee, "but unless I'm mistaken, you were carrying a pitchfork right along with the rest of them." He arched a brow and waited for an answer.

"So I'm not thrilled to have Daisy for a roommate again," Cam shrugged. "I'm fairly certain you're going to be less than thrilled with your roommate as well," she grinned a little cattily.

"Bones is my roommate," Booth said firmly, his voice brooking no argument.

"Sorry, Studly, no can do," Angela snorted.

"What?" gasped Brennan, her head coming up, proving that she had been paying close attention to the conversation. "Why?" she demanded.

"It's not negotiable, Angela," Booth growled.

"Look, guys, I really appreciate the effort you two are putting forth to convince us you're together but nobody's buying it so you can give it a rest anytime now. Besides, there are only four girls which means Daisy and Cam in one room and me and Bren in the other." Finishing her explanation, she glanced up to find the other four people at the table staring at her in open mouthed astonishment. "What?"

"Angela, I don't really care what….," Booth began a little harshly, only to be interrupted by Hodgins who was giving him an I've got this look.

"Ange, who did you put in with Booth?" he asked conversationally. It was obvious that the FBI agent was stressed to the max and he felt like he owed Booth and Brennan a solid for interrupting them before they could relieve a little of that stress. Lucky for them, he knew just how to do that.

"Van Buren."

"And me?"

"Sweets."

Hodgins didn't have to fake the shudder that ran over him at that information. Quarters might be tight but no freaking way. "I'm sorry, Ange, but I'm going to have to protest that one because I'm relatively certain I _will_ kill him in his sleep and that would just make more work for us," he joked charmingly and Angela gave a throaty laugh in return.

"What would you suggest?" Angela asked, placing her elbows on the table and leaning forward, her eyes openly flirting with Hodgins.

"Well, I think Booth can protect himself from any homicidal tendencies that might develop on my part, so you could put us together," Hodgins suggested softly, pushing his empty bowl aside and mimicking Angela's posture.

"Not exactly what I had in mind, Hodgins," Booth hissed under his breath.

"Trust me, Booth," Hodgins urged so softly that only Booth heard him, his eyes continuing to flirt with Angela.

"Oh, for God's sake, would you two just get a room already?" Cam snapped in disgust.

"I think the whole point of the conversation is they can't, Cam," Brennan explained helpfully. "There seem to be no rooms available for coed cohabitation," she added morosely, dropping her hand to cover the one Booth had placed on her thigh underneath the table.

"Oookay, and on that note, I'm out of here," Cam rolled her eyes and stood. "I think it will be best for Daisy's continued good health if I can get to sleep before she retires for the night," she said, only half jokingly.

"Well, Cam, if you feel that strongly about it, you can always take Fisher up on his offer," giggled Angela.

"I don't think so, Angela, but thanks for reminding me that I'm now in his spank bank. That's sure to generate some pleasant dreams," she responded just a tad snarkily.

"Glad to help," Angela grinned imperturbably.

"What's a spank bank?" asked Brennan innocently, bringing all eyes to her. Before anyone else could answer, Booth slid an arm along the back of her chair, the fingers of that hand stroking the side of her neck and, with a husky chuckle, bent his head to whisper in her ear. Brennan's eyes widened and her mouth rounded in an o of surprise at the thought of Cam in Fisher's sexual fantasies. She so didn't want to even speculate on what those fantasies would entail because that young man was extremely odd by anyone's standards. Her mind quickly emptied of all thoughts of anyone else's fantasies as Booth's hand began to stroke up and down her inner thigh and he began to draw wickedly erotic images out of his own spank bank and describe them to her in delicious detail.

"Oh, please," Angela rolled her eyes at Booth and Brennan's unwillingness to give up the couple pretense.

Cam rolled her eyes at Angela's refusal to see what was so clearly right in front of her but Angela's blindness wasn't her problem. Unfortunately, for the moment, sharing a room with Daisy Wick _was _her problem and she needed all of her energy to deal with it. "So who needs to swap rooms, me or Daisy?" Cam questioned, her notable lack of enthusiasm increasing Angela's and Hodgins' amusement at her predicament. Booth and Brennan were deeply involved in a whispered conversation and appeared to have forgotten anyone else was in the room.

"Since Daisy and I are already sharing a bathroom, it would probably be best if you moved in with her," Angela advised after a thoughtful moment.

"Okay," sighed Cam, starting to turn away.

"Are you sure that's such a great idea, Ange?" asked Hodgins, the doubtful look on his face clearly saying he thought it was a terrible idea. He thought four women sharing one bathroom was definitely a recipe for disaster but he was seeing an opportunity to enhance his plan to help out Booth and Brennan and he wasn't about to let it pass.

"Why wouldn't it be?" Cam asked, turning back to eye Hodgins suspiciously.

"Hey," Hodgins held up his hands, palms outward in a gesture of supplication, "I'm just saying four women sharing one bathroom could cause some friction." Angela's eyes narrowed contemplatively. She knew Hodgins well enough to know he was up to something, she just wasn't sure what. Beyond that, his observation was certainly valid and Heaven knew, this bunch didn't need any more friction.

"He does have a point, Angela," Cam unexpectedly agreed, chewing on her bottom lip. "It might help to maintain the peace if we split up."

"Sure, Cam, just have Daisy move her stuff into your room," she told the pathologist, studying Hodgins out of the corner of her eye, noting that he looked way too pleased with himself, still not sure what he was playing at but willing to go along with it.

"Goodnight, then," Cam wished the room in general but she doubted anyone noticed. Booth and Brennan had their heads bent closely together, obviously lost in their conversation and each other and Hodgins and Angela couldn't seem to drag their eyes away from each other. With a disgusted sigh, she pushed through the door and headed off to find her roomie, wondering how the hell being the boss had come to this.

"What are you up to?" Angela demanded of Hodgins as soon as the door closed behind Cam.

"Moi?" asked Hodgins innocently, bringing his hands to his chest dramatically. "Ange, I'm hurt that you would think I'm up to something," he grinned.

"Umm hmm," Angela regarded him through narrowed eyes. "I will figure it out you know," she warned.

"Just trying to help, Ange," he smirked into his coffee.

Coming to the conclusion that it was stupid to continue to get himself and Brennan any more worked up than they already were with no sign of relief in sight, Booth took one last, lingering look at her flushed face and glazed eyes and reluctantly removed his roaming hands from her person. Biting her lip to hold back a whimper of protest, her eyes promised retribution and it took every bit of control he had not to simply stand up, say to hell with it and drag her upstairs to the first empty bedroom he could find.

"Hold that thought," he whispered into her ear, determined to find a way for them to get some alone time tonight, no matter what it took. Gritting his teeth in frustration and shifting in his seat to find a more comfortable position for his hard, aching body, he finally dragged his eyes away from Brennan and focused on Angela and Hodgins. Overhearing the last couple of remarks, he repressed a snort at Hodgins' less than convincing avowals of innocence, wondering the same thing. _Just what the hell was the bug man up to? _

Brennan took several slow deep breaths and tried to calm her racing heart, unable to believe that Booth had gotten her so worked up sitting at the dinner table with colleagues, for God's sakes. And that thought instantly defeated the purpose of the deep breathing, her mind flooding with the erotic images he had been describing to her. _Dammit_. She had to get out of here or she was going to be crawling all over him in about 30 seconds. Abruptly pushing her chair back, she hastily stood on shaky legs and took her dirty dishes to the sink, rinsing them out. Fighting the urge to kick and scream in frustration, she braced her extended arms on the sink, hung her head and closed her eyes, breathing deeply and assuring herself that she wouldn't really spontaneously combust from sexual frustration, no matter how much it felt like it.

"Are you okay, Sweetie?" Angela asked from directly beside her, concerned at Brennan's unusual behavior.

Brennan's head swung around and she focused on Angela's concerned face, touched by that concern. "I'm just tired, Ange," she sighed, wincing at her own not quite honest answer.

Quickly scanning Brennan's face and seeing signs of fatigue there, Angela went into protective mother hen mode. "Why don't I show you where our room is and you can crawl into bed and get some sleep?" she suggested, putting a bracing arm around Brennan's shoulders and turning her toward the door.

"Fine," sighed Brennan. Since she wouldn't be having mind blowing sex with Booth all night like she would prefer, getting a shower and some sleep was a viable alternative. At least if she was asleep, she wouldn't be thinking about what she was missing. "But I need to shower first," she clarified.

"Sure, Sweetie, whatever you need," Angela soothed, leading Brennan toward the door as if she were a child or too infirm to walk on her own.

Hodgins leaned back in his chair and watched the show, shaking his head in bemusement. Besides Booth, Angela was the only person in the world that he knew of who could get by with treating Brennan like that. Had anyone else, probably including himself, made the same overtures, they would have received a verbal set down at best or be picking themselves up off the floor at worst.

"Do you guys want me to show you where your room is?" Angela dropped the arm from Brennan's shoulders and turned to Booth and Hodgins.

"Just tell us where it is, Ange. I'm sure we can find it on our own," Booth quickly answered, needing a few more minutes before he was presentable, especially after catching sight of the sexy, knowing smile curving Brennan's very kissable lips. The way her hot, eager eyes were running over him wasn't really helping either.

"You could just say you wanted to have some pie, Booth," laughed Angela. "Take a right at the top of the stairs and your room is the second door on the left."

"Who will we be sharing a bathroom with, Ange?" called Hodgins as she and Brennan pushed the kitchen door open.

"Us," Angela called over her shoulder, before allowing the door to swing closed behind her.

"Excellent," Hodgins grinned in satisfaction. Booth had to admit the situation had some interesting possibilities but throw in Angela as a wild card and nothing was likely to go as planned. Not that he had a plan, per se, he would simply play it by ear once they got upstairs.

"What are you up to, Hodgins?" Booth asked suspiciously.

"You'll see," Hodgins returned mysteriously.

"I'd rather hear," Booth growled, rising to take his dirty dishes to the sink and grab a piece of pie.

"It's a work in progress," Hodgins admitted as Booth rejoined him, "but I don't doubt it will get results," he hastily added at Booth's raised brow. "Don't sweat it, Booth. I've got this under control," Hodgins assured him confidently.

"Now why doesn't that fill me with confidence, Hodgins?" Booth returned, already halfway through his pie.

"Because you're a cynic?" grinned Hodgins, ignoring Booth's eye rolling and forgiving him the snarky tone, knowing it was mostly frustration talking.

"Yeah, that must be it," Booth snorted, finishing his pie and pinning Hodgins in his steely gaze as he picked up his coffee cup and drained it. As much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't just kick Angela out of Brennan's room for the night, so he and Hodgins were stuck with each other and he just had to make the best of it. He was already tired and irritated and unbelievably hot and horny and the last thing he needed to top off all those lovely emotions was a lot of shenanigans from anyone, especially his roommate. "Look, Hodgins, I'm really not in the mood for a bunch of squint games tonight," he advised firmly and Hodgins nodded. He wouldn't call what he had in mind a game, exactly. It was more like the strategic use of a diversionary tactic. "So, we're clear here?" Booth asked, suspicious of the entomologist's easy capitulation.

"Sure," agreed Hodgins easily. It was very clear to him that Booth needed his help or they were both going to be spending a miserable night, him because his roommate was a grouch and Booth because his roommate wasn't Brennan. Since his plan would eliminate both of those problems in one fell swoop, the only logical thing to do was put it into action as soon as possible.

"Good," Booth gave him one last, long, hard look and got up to dispose of his empty pie plate, considering the matter settled. Hodgins wouldn't be giving him any problems.

Not even bothering to try and hide his smirk, Hodgins followed Booth's example then followed him from the room, eager to get upstairs and put his plan into motion. Booth might not think he needed the help but in a couple of hours he would be amazed by the awesomeness of what Hodgins could do when he set his mind to it.


	41. Chapter 41

**Sorry for the delay in posting. As always, I truly appreciate the reviews and read each and every one. I am responding to them individually slowly but surely. I hope you enjoy the chapter and please continue to review.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Following Angela into the room that had been allocated to them, Brennan was surprised at how spacious it was but she guessed a large room was necessary to accommodate the two full sized beds just as you would find in a hotel room but the comparison ended there. This room had been decorated by someone with good taste from the simple chintz curtains at the floor to ceiling window to the attractive throw rugs scattered on the gleaming, polished, hardwood floor. The large dresser and the two oversized chairs set in front of the window were sturdily constructed but still attractive and fit very well into the log cabin décor as did the few knickknacks scattered around. Brennan especially liked the series of stark black and white sketches of different angles of the surrounding mountains scattered on the walls.

"This is nice," Brennan commented, wandering over to study one of the sketches more closely.

"Yeah, it feels all warm and homey which is kind of nice after the Bates Motel," Angela laughed but in truth she loved this room. It made her feel like she was being welcomed into a friend's home, into a room that had been carefully and specifically prepared just for her. The whole lodge made her feel like that, welcome and wanted, and it was a nice feeling, giving her something positive to focus on in such difficult circumstances. It just wasn't something she was sure she could explain to her best friend. "The Talbert's are really nice, too," she offered instead.

"Mr. Talbert seems to be very socially adept," Brennan agreed absently, laying her bag on the nearest bed and starting to unpack. She was feeling tense, edgy, physical fatigue dragging at her but the pent up sexual arousal zinging along every nerve ending in her body demanded that she keep moving, find a way to expel some of that energy so she would at least have a chance to rest when she lay down. Angela flopped down on the other bed, propping her head on her hands and grinning at Brennan's unique way of saying someone was nice.

Holding an armful of underwear against her chest, Brennan walked to the bureau and pulled the top drawer open, gasping as she stared at the single item inside in absolute disbelief. Haphazardly dropping her underwear partially in the drawer and partially on the bureau top, she reached inside the open drawer and dragged out her missing jeans, her mind whirling to come up with a logical explanation, shocked and dismayed and, yeah, more than a little pissed with the obvious implication. Angela had taken her pants. "You took my pants," she accused, swinging around and shaking the jeans at Angela. "Why would you do that, Angela?" Brennan demanded aggressively, knowing her reaction was disproportionate for the alleged crime but she couldn't seem to help it, all that frustration and aggravation coalescing into a hot ball of fury, demanding to be released, not particularly caring who reaped the benefit of her angst.

"Calm down, Bren," Angela laughed. "Of course, I didn't take your pants," Angela assured her, collapsing on the bed and rolling around with laughter when Brennan just looked at her incredulously and shook the evidence to the contrary in her face, apparently at a loss for words to express just how much she didn't believe that. Finally regaining control, Angela pulled herself into a cross legged sitting position in the middle of the bed and wiped the tears of hilarity from her eyes, only to start laughing again when she saw Brennan still staring at her accusingly, arms crossed over her chest, her foot tapping the floor impatiently, still waiting for an explanation. "Okay, okay, I guess that, technically, I did take them," Angela confessed.

"AHA!" exclaimed Brennan, indignation surging through her whole body, hands clenching into fists at her sides in an effort to contain angry words that she wouldn't even mean and Angela didn't really deserve. Words that had nothing to do with her pilfered jeans and everything to do with not sharing a room with Booth.

"But it was an accident," Angela hastily added, holding her hands up in a beseeching gesture when Brennan's expression grew even more incredulous and very angry. "I found them mixed in with the Jeffersonian jumpsuits when I brought them in to wash them, Bren. Honest," she said cajolingly, surprised at Brennan's volatile reaction.

"Oh," Brennan sighed in disgust, tossing the jeans back in the drawer. She had no doubt that Angela was telling the truth. It certainly made more sense that her pants had somehow fallen off of the shelf in the bathroom and had been put in the dirty laundry hamper than someone had sneaked into the lab only to steal her pants. _But, damn, now she didn't even have something legitimate to yell about and that pissed her off even more. _Stalking back to her bag, she grabbed a stack of blouses and returned to the bureau, practically throwing them inside, regardless of how they landed, taking her aggravation out on whatever was handy.

"Even at the risk of getting my ass kicked, I have to ask just how was it you lost your pants in the first place, Bren?" Angela managed to wipe the smile off of her face, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, eying Brennan's militant march with interest.

"Would you believe me if I said I forgot to put them back on after Booth and I had hot sex in the bathroom of the lab?" she snapped before she could stop herself, immediately stopping and rubbing a hand across her face, telling herself to pull it together before she managed to pick a fight with Angela. Unfortunately that didn't sound like a half bad idea at the moment.

Angela choked on her snort of disbelief as she caught sight of Brennan's face. Her eyes widened then narrowed and she simply stared, completely unable to tell if Brennan was kidding or not, feeling the first pang of doubt she had experienced about refusing to believe Booth and Brennan were a couple. Eyes narrowing even further, she tilted her head to the side and met Brennan's level gaze. Damn, she still couldn't tell and that really threw her off. But, since Brennan wasn't renowned for her sense of humor and was almost pathologically allergic to lying about anything, not to mention really, really bad at it, Angela had to consider the possibility that she was telling the truth, a mind-blowing prospect to say the least. _Could she really have been so blinded by Daisy's warning that she had missed seeing the culmination of 5 long, long years of hoping, daydreaming, even occasional plotting and manipulation? _ It was a sobering question, and one that she had to have the answer to. "Is that what happened?" she asked with keen interest.

"No," sighed Brennan, unable to lie about it even for the shock value it would provide. Besides, none of the things bothering her were really Angela's fault and she didn't deserve to be treated like the enemy.

"Too bad," Angela sighed, flopping backward on the bed, acutely disappointed by the denial but glad to know her radar wasn't broken after all. "I would have really, really enjoyed hearing about that," she added, humor lacing her voice.

"I would have really, really enjoyed _doing_ that," Brennan muttered under her breath, making another trip between her bag and the bureau, too busy silently cursing the erotic images flickering through her brain and further torturing her already humming body to correct the artist's assumption that she would be privy to any intimate details of her relationship with Booth.

"I guess that's just as well," groaned Angela, throwing an arm over her eyes. "I haven't had sex in so long that I'm not sure I could take those kinds of details."

"What?" asked Brennan, placing the last of her things in the bureau drawer and swinging around to frown at Angela in confusion. "I thought you and Wendell were together." Closing the drawer, she walked over and sat down on the side of the bed Angela was sprawled on.

"We broke up," Angela said calmly, lowering her arm and meeting Brennan's eyes.

"I didn't know that," Brennan said carefully, trying to keep her voice neutral. She had been ambivalent about the relationship from the start, not really judging Angela or Wendell but feeling that the potential for disastrous results negatively impacting her team was high.

"It was just last night, Bren, so how could you know?" Angela reached out and patted Brennan's arm as if she had been the one to suffer a break up. She had known that Brennan hadn't been entirely thrilled with her relationship with Wendell but she had never said a single judgmental word or given them a single chastising look and Angela was grateful for that.

"Was it bad?" asked Brennan softly, trying to be the supportive best friend.

"No," sighed Angela, "it was very civil, just long overdue."

"I don't understand," Brennan blinked.

"About the sex, you mean?" grinned Angela and Brennan shrugged, but she couldn't help but laugh at Angela's one track mind.

"Ahem," Hodgins leaned against the bathroom doorjamb and cleared his throat before this conversation went somewhere that he didn't want to follow. "Is this a private party or can anyone join in?" he grinned, not at all surprised that Angela and Brennan glanced at him without so much as a blush. It would take much, much more than someone overhearing them talking about sex to embarrass either one of them.

"Where's Booth?" Brennan asked instantly, leaning over and trying to peer behind Hodgins.

"He got held up with Van Buren," Hodgins supplied, "but he said to tell you he won't be long and he needs you for a couple of hours to work on the case." Booth hadn't actually said that but Hodgins was improvising on his plan and he didn't think Booth or Brennan would mind having a couple of hours alone if he couldn't manage to give them the whole night.

"Okay," Brennan frowned in confusion. She had seen Booth several times today and he always updated her on what was going on with the case so she was curious about what information he could have received since she had come upstairs. Not that she was complaining because any excuse to spend two hours alone with Booth sounded like heaven to her right about now and she wasn't going to waste a second of it. She was sure she could tempt him to put work aside for a few minutes and, God knew, as hot as she'd been for the last couple of hours, a few minutes is all it would take to make them both feel much, much better. "I'm going to take a shower now," she told Angela softly, standing up and gathering her clean clothes and toiletries efficiently and rather hurriedly.

"Okay, Sweetie." Dragging herself into a sitting position and settling her back against the headboard, Angela threw Hodgins a laughing glance. "I'm pretty sure Bren's going to want you to vacate the bathroom while she's showering, Hodgins."

"I was waiting for an invitation to come in," he returned with a sheepish grin.

"Did you recently turn into a vampire?" Angela teased.

"No, Ange," he snorted, "but it is considered the polite thing to do."

"Then please come in," she invited graciously, making a grand, sweeping gesture with her arm and Hodgins stepped out of Brennan's way just as she breezed past him. Raising an amused brow at her haste, he walked over and sat down on the bed, kicking off his shoes and wiggling backward until he was sitting shoulder to shoulder with Angela. "I've never seen Bren quite so eager to take a shower before," Angela's dancing eyes focused on the rapidly closing door.

"Maybe she's just really dirty. She has been on site for two days," Hodgins ventured, ducking his head to hide his grin.

"Umm hmm," murmured Angela slowly turning her head and regarding him through narrowed eyes. "What are you up to, Hodgins?" she purred.

"Jeez, Ange, when did you get so suspicious? The next thing you know, you'll be spouting outrageous conspiracy theories," he chided. As soon as the words emerged, he clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes widening in horror.

"I bet you never thought you would say that, huh?" she giggled, drawing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, her cheek resting on her knees as she grinned at him.

"You'd win that bet," he confirmed with a wry grin, mimicking her position and gazing into her eyes from a distance of mere inches, badly wanting to close that distance and kiss her silly. "I heard what you said about you and Wendell. I'm sorry," he said softly, holding her eyes.

"Are you really?" Angela asked candidly and Hodgins winced, not having been prepared for her to question his words.

Dropping his eyes from hers, he gave the question some thought. What was he supposed to say? That it made him want to throw up every time he thought of anyone else touching her? That he had come to almost hate Wendell, a good guy, even a good friend until the last few months? That he wanted to kick his own ass every time he remembered that she had come to him before turning to Wendell? That he was desperately in love with her and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her? All of those things were true but he didn't think she was really ready to hear them and he wanted to do it right this time because he didn't think he would survive losing her again. He wanted this time to be forever.

"I just want you to be happy, Angela," he finally answered, reaching out and pushing her hair back over her shoulder.

"Happy would be good," Angela whispered, her eyes fluttering closed as Hodgins' hand slipped to the nape of her neck and he leaned closer, his lips almost touching hers.

"Knock, knock," Booth called cheerfully, pushing the door further open and stepping inside the room, feeling just a twinge of satisfaction that he was obviously interrupting something intimate, his eyes immediately sweeping the room and noting Brennan's absence.

"Thanks a lot, Booth," grouched Hodgins, glaring at him, noting the entirely too self-satisfied smirk on Booth's face.

"You're welcome," Booth assured him just a tad maliciously and Hodgins had to admit that he had kind of had it coming. "Where's Bones?" Booth queried, striding across the room and looking around as if Hodgins and Angela were hiding Brennan from him.

"She's taking a shower," Hodgins informed Booth, wearing his own smirk when Booth cast a longing look at the bathroom door before sitting down on the side of the other bed with a tired sigh.

"What's going on?" Angela asked, her eyes bouncing back and forth between the two men, feeling like she was missing something.

"Nothing," sighed Hodgins, smiling at Angela. "I've already told Brennan and Angela that you need a couple of hours to go over the case with Brennan," Hodgins continued, turning his head toward Booth and trying to convey that Booth shouldn't contradict him with his eyes.

Not being a moron, Booth caught on quickly and bit back a laugh at the comical, big eyed, eyebrow wiggling faces Hodgins was making. He knew he shouldn't go along with the lie, that he should just tell the truth but he simply didn't have the energy to deal with Angela's theatrics and he sure as hell wasn't above taking advantage of some alone time with Brennan. In fact, he was going to stretch that time out as long as possible. "Yeah, Hodgins, about that. I don't think two hours are going to do it," he said innocently, grinning at Hodgins.

"Oookay," drawled Hodgins, somewhat surprised that Booth was taking the offensive. "Just how long do you need?"

"It's hard to say," Booth shrugged.

"Hmmm," Hodgins murmured as if he had to think hard on a solution.

"Oh, for Heaven's sake, you two," Angela snapped, sliding off the bed and marching over to the bathroom door, Booth and Hodgins watching her with wide eyed interest. Finding the door locked, she knocked loudly and raised her voice. "Bren, Booth needs for you to help him with the case so is it okay with you if we switch roommates at least for tonight?" Nodding at Brennan's muffled affirmative, Angela turned back to Hodgins and Booth with a raised brow. "Problem solved, boys. Is there anything else I can help you with?" she grinned.

"Nope. I'm good," Booth answered.

"Well, I have several things that I could use your help with," Hodgins assured her huskily, ignoring Booth's eye rolling and getting up off the bed to walk slowly toward Angela. "I suggest we take this somewhere more private and discuss it," he recommended softly, letting everything he felt for her shine from his eyes and holding out a hand in invitation.

"I can do that," agreed Angela softly, her eyes eagerly searching his, fighting down her fear of messing things up with him yet again and placing her hand in his. His hand immediately closed firmly over hers and she felt those doubts and fears float away as if they had never been, a brilliant smile breaking over her face.

"Okay, then," Hodgins mumbled, barely aware he was speaking, feeling like he had just been handed all of his dreams on a silver platter. Without another word, he turned toward the door, gently pulling Angela behind him.

"Ahem," Booth cleared his throat loudly and Hodgins turned his head to see the FBI agent looking at them with amusement and what Hodgins hoped was approval.

"What?" he asked, giving Booth a sheepish smile for forgetting he was even in the room.

"Clothes," Booth suggested helpfully, not wanting to be interrupted after he and Brennan were alone. With the way Hodgins and Angela were looking at each other and acting, he didn't think they would be venturing out of their own room once they were alone but, with those two, you just never knew and he wasn't taking any chances.

"Oh yeah," laughed Angela, reluctantly pulling her hand away from Hodgins and quickly gathering what she would need for tonight and in the morning and following Hodgins to the door. Booth was right behind them, more than ready for them to be gone and lock the rest of the world out for the night. Practically pushing them through the doorway, Booth had the door almost closed when Angela turned back and slapped her hand against it to keep it open.

"Bren is really tired, Booth. She's been working for two whole days so don't keep her up all night talking about the case," she ordered bossily, her eyes widening at the sexy grin that settled on Booth's face.

"Angela, you can rest assured that I will be getting Bones to bed as soon as humanly possible," he chuckled huskily before shutting the door firmly in her face. Angela blinked again and swallowed hard, she was crazy about Hodgins but she wasn't dead and Booth was one hell of a sexy man. She had no idea how Brennan continued to resist him when he looked at her like that but that wasn't really her problem. Tonight, she didn't have any problems, only the opportunity to make things right with Hodgins and maybe, just maybe, get her life back on track. "Ready?" she asked brightly, turning toward Hodgins.

"Absolutely ready for anything," Hodgins grinned, holding out his hand again and leading her toward the room they would be sharing and, hopefully, their future together.


	42. Chapter 42

**Hey, guys, I'm finally back with what you have been waiting for. This chapter is really long but I'm not going to apologize because I don't think you'll really mind. Enjoy and please don't forget to review.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Booth engaged the lock on the door with supreme satisfaction, grinning at the memory of the look on Angela's face, not feeling even the least little bit bad for throwing something out there to shock the artist. Angela was usually one of the most astute people he knew about accurately gauging the involvement of two people and this obstinate refusal to believe he and Brennan were now a couple was beginning to get on his nerves. She would eventually figure it out and he had a feeling he and Brennan would be paying for that delayed understanding more than for hiding the relationship from her in the first place. Not that he particularly cared if Angela was angry but she could cause Brennan all kinds of grief and that was just unacceptable. He was going to have another talk with Angela tomorrow and find some way to make her believe, he resolved firmly, but tonight, he wasn't going to give her another thought. Tonight was solely for him and Brennan.

Unable to resist the lure of joining Brennan in the shower, he walked to the bathroom door and tried to turn the knob, acutely disappointed when it didn't turn even though he knew Angela had already tried it. Intensely frustrated, especially since the picture of Brennan standing under the spray of warm water, her naked body glistening with drops of moisture, was crystal clear in his mind, he sank down on the end of the nearest bed and removed his shoes and socks, sighing in relief and wiggling his tired toes, willing himself to think of something else.

But his mind stubbornly held onto the image, enhancing it until he could feel the damp warmth from the hot spray, until he could smell the vanilla of favorite shampoo and body wash, until his eager, hungry eyes could follow individual drops of water beading on her shoulders and slowly sliding downward over every curve and valley of her delicious body. Gritting his teeth to hold back a moan, he tugged his t-shirt over his head, carelessly tossing it onto the other bed and flopped back on the bed, one forearm covering his eyes as he surrendered to the erotic images unfolding in his head.

And, God, they were erotic and arousing as hell, his body responding to the fantasy as if it were really happening, especially since he had already been wound up so many times today without any relief. His hands clenched into fists with the need to touch as he pictured himself standing inside the shower enclosure with her, her head tilted backward under the spray of the shower, a look of utter bliss on her face. His breath caught and his groin tightened at the look that was generally reserved for when she was coming apart in his arms, a look that never failed to make his heart go pitter patter in his chest with love and pride and his gut burn with the need to make her look like that over and over again.

Dragging his eyes away from her face, they immediately focused on her soapy hands as they glided slickly over the graceful arch of her neck, moving downward with excruciating slowness until they stroked softly over her bountiful breasts, a soft moan sighing through her slightly parted lips. Booth's mouth watered and his hips shifted restlessly on the bed as he watched her touch firm, her hands closing on the lush mounds and squeezing, her fingers rolling and plucking at their pebbled tips, her hips rocking forward with every tug, making no attempt to stifle her soft gasps and whimpers of pleasure.

Gut clenching into an almost painful knot of need, Booth fought down the almost overwhelming urge to break down that damned bathroom door, step into the shower with Brennan and take what he so badly needed. Instead, he reached down and popped the button on his uncomfortably tight jeans, carefully lowering the zipper, his breath hissing out in a rush when his hand brushed firmly against his hard, hot erection. Ignoring the urge to let his hand settle for just a moment and give himself some measure of relief from the ache centered in his groin, he turned back to his fantasy, silently giving himself permission to act on his aggressive need to take, to claim what was his.

Jaw clenched so tightly his teeth were grinding together, he saw himself reach for Brennan's shower gel, lathering his hands well before reaching out and nudging hers out of the way. Brennan's head came up and her eyelids fluttered open over glazed, smoky blue eyes, her lips parting in a keening moan, her back arching, silently begging for the firmer touch of his seeking hands. Without hesitation, his hands covered her breasts, stroking, smoothing, weighing and testing, his fingers resuming the pull and tug on her distended nipples, pulling another hoarse, needy moan from her throat.

Bending his head, Booth covered her mouth with his, swallowing the moan and immediately demanding more, his tongue thrusting aggressively into her mouth and his hands moving hungrily over her soap slick body. Whimpering, Brennan opened her mouth wider, her tongue dueling with his, one hand sliding up his chest and burying itself in his hair, pulling him even closer. Backing her up until she was pressed against the shower wall, they shared a moan as he stepped closer, flattening her sensitive breasts against his hard chest, his aching hard on pressing firmly into the soft flesh of her lower abdomen. Gasping and trying to get closer, Brennan worked her free hand between their bodies and closed her fingers tightly around his sensitive flesh, stroking him in a hard, fast rhythm designed to drive him out of his mind.

And it worked. No longer able to form coherent thought, Booth acted on an instinct as old as time itself, the instinct for male and female to come together, to mate. With a low, animalistic growl that sounded remarkably like a snarl, he dislodged Brennan's hand from his hard on and his hands went to her bottom, cupping and lifting, silently urging her to wrap her legs around his waist, the need to be inside of her completely in control, driving his every action.

"No," she gasped against his mouth, pushing against his chest. "Wait."

Snarling for real this time, Booth tried to force his hands to turn her loose but they refused to listen, tightening and pulling her closer instead of letting her go. Panting, gasping for breath, Brennan managed to get her feet back on the floor of the shower and began wiggling and squirming against him, the slide of her soft skin against his engorged erection almost sending him over the edge.

"You're killing me here, baby," he groaned hoarsely, his body growing even tighter at the husky, sultry laugh his complaint elicited.

"I was just trying to turn around," Brennan purred, "but if you don't like it, I can always get out," she offered, repeating the husky laugh when Booth had her spun around with her front pressed against the shower wall before she could blink.

"Is this what you want, baby?" he growled into her ear bringing their linked hands up to press against the wall on either side of her head, stepping in closer behind her, his hard on slipping between her slick, wet butt cheeks. Hissing in pleasure, Booth couldn't stop the forward thrust of his hips, the easy glide of her firm flesh around his hardened length almost more than he could handle.

"Yes," she gasped, pushing her bottom back against him.

And then he lost it completely, simply unable to wait one second longer to be inside of her. Pressing both of her hands flat against the wall to indicate he wanted them to stay there, his hands slid away from hers down her raised arms, down her sides to settle on her waist and pull her hips backward so that her torso was bent forward at a 45 degree angle. Nudging her feet further apart with one of his, he stepped closer, guided his hard length to her entrance and paused, every fiber of his being anticipating the indescribable pleasure of that first thrust, that feeling of their souls as well as their bodies becoming one.

"Booth," Brennan moaned plaintively, her bottom rhythmically rocking back against him, "please don't make me wait."

"I love you, Bones," Booth whispered, bending forward over her back, his teeth sinking into her shoulder just as his butt clenched, poised to drive into her tight, wet heat.

"Hi."

Booth jerked his arm away from his eyes and looked toward the voice that had pulled him from one of the hottest fantasies ever. Shaking, his whole body on fire from the intensity of his fantasy, his breath coming in rapid, erratic pants, Booth gazed at the subject of that fantasy. _God, she was the hottest thing he'd ever seen in his life, _leaning negligently against the doorjamb of the bathroom, her eyes lazily sweeping over him, the sexy curve of her lips telling him she very much liked what she saw. "Hi," he returned, levering his torso off of the bed and leaning back with his arms extended behind him, trying to get his body under control before he leaped off the bed and attacked her. His eyes slowly raked over her sexy form from head to toe, taking in the sky blue pajama tank top and matching miniscule panties that hid her delicious curves from his eyes and he immediately wanted to rip them off and devour her where she stood. "Nice," he breathed, dragging his eyes back up to meet hers, his gut clenching anew at the hot flare of desire in her eyes. "Come here," he demanded huskily.

Ignoring her body's demand to run across the room, dive on top of him and immediately have her wicked way with him, Brennan lazily pushed away from the doorjamb and deliberately turned fully toward the bathroom door to turn the deadbolt. She couldn't help the smile of pride at Booth's hissed intake of breath when he caught sight of her rear end, covered only by two thin strips of sky blue lace. Turning back toward the bed, her steps faltered as his blazing eyes lifted to meet hers again, the want, the lust, the need radiating from his darkening eyes and rolling off of him in waves taking her breath away and sending shivers down her spine.

Seeing the slight tremors shaking Brennan's form, the way her nipples tightened and pressed prominently against her top, the rapid rise and fall of her chest, the way her tongue flicked out to moisten suddenly dry lips sent even more blood rushing to Booth's groin, making his already rock hard erection impossibly harder. Unable to force words out of his dry throat, Booth raised a shaking hand and crooked a finger at her, repeating his order silently this time. "What were you doing?" Brennan asked with a wickedly sinful smile, her eyes focusing on his unbuttoned pants and the obvious erection pushing through the opening. Languidly strolling toward him with exaggeratedly swaying hips, she was suddenly glad she hadn't given in to the urge to take the edge of her arousal in the shower. She had a feeling this was going to be worth the wait.

"I was thinking about you in the shower," he confessed, pushing himself into a fully sitting position and sliding to the end of the bed. "Actually, I was thinking about us in the shower," he said huskily as she stopped in front of him.

"It must have been good," she laughed throatily, glancing back down at his lap.

"Very," he agreed, his hands clasping her hips and urging her between his spread thighs, his eyes focused on the strip of bare, toned abdomen showing between her shirt and panties.

"Are you going to tell me about it?" Brennan asked breathlessly, her hands coming up to rest on his shoulders, her fingers spreading and beginning to stroke his shoulders and upper back. _God, she loved his body_, the unyielding hardness of well developed muscles covered by smooth, hot skin made her want to stroke and kiss every single inch of that spectacular body at the most inappropriate times.

"I'd rather show you," Booth mumbled, his voice muffled as his lips landed on the incredibly soft skin of her abdomen, his thumbs repeatedly rubbing over her hipbones.

"Okay," she gasped and arched toward him when the tip of his tongue drew circles around her bellybutton then plunged inside. "But aren't you forgetting something?" she prodded huskily, her nails scraping the nape of his neck and tunneling into his hair, urging him closer. Brennan's abdominal muscles clenched then quivered, sending a shiver down her spine as she felt Booth's lips curve into a smile against her skin.

"Hi, honey, I'm home," he whispered throatily, nudging her shirt hem further up with his nose and laying hot, open mouthed kisses on every inch of satiny flesh as it was revealed.

"Hello, dear, how was your day?" Brennan grinned at the familiar ritual they had started after Booth had talked her into watching _Leave it to Beaver _on video. She had scoffed at the idealized portrayal of family life and Booth had started using that greeting at the end of each day, teasing, nagging and cajoling until she had finally given him the appropriate response. It had started out as a joke but had somehow stuck and now it made her feel safe and warm inside.

"Oh, it had its moments," Booth assured her, his hands sliding around and under the lace, cupping her the firm, bare flesh of her bottom, tilting it up slightly, "and it's getting better by the second," he growled, lowering his head, catching the lace waistband of her panties between his teeth and tugging it downward, lightly scraping her lower abdomen with his teeth in the process. "You have entirely too many clothes on," he complained, his tongue flicking out to lick and soothe the spot he had just scraped.

Shuddering, her knees going weak, Brennan's hands moved to Booth's shoulders for support, her nails unconsciously digging in. "Maybe you should do something about that," she suggested throatily.

"Maybe I should," he agreed, shifting his position slightly, his big, hard hands pulling her hips forward and downward until she was straddling one hard thigh. "Hi, again," he whispered, bending to rest his forehead against hers and nuzzle her nose with his, trying to take things slow and give his body a chance to calm down a little.

"Hi," she smiled back, lifting her head and catching his bottom lip between her teeth, tugging lightly.

_So much for cooling off._ Moaning, Booth's hand tunneled into her hair and curved over the back of her head, holding her still as his mouth opened over hers, hot, hard and demanding, his tongue sweeping across the inside of her lower lip before venturing into the sweet, moist depths of her mouth. Whimpering, Brennan wrapped her arms around his neck, opened her mouth and freely surrendered herself to the blinding, consuming passion that only this man could rouse in her. Wanting, needing, his hands and mouth to be all over her, for her hands and mouth to be all over him, for him to be inside of her all at the same time, her hips rolled restlessly against his thigh, the friction of rough denim against her swollen clit sending fresh jolts of desire through her entire body.

Shuddering at the feel of her moist heat against his thigh, even through his jeans, Booth's hands moved to Brennan's back and jerked her against him. The feel of her lush breasts flattening against his granite chest, her hard nipples stabbing against him like branding irons sent waves of desire rolling over him, waves so strong that every cell of Booth's body ached with the need to bury himself inside her hot, tight, wet center. Mouth becoming even more voracious, his hands smoothed down her back, worked under the hem of her tank top and stroked upward pushing her shirt before them, his fingers spreading wide to touch as much of her body as possible, reveling in the feel of her soft, silky skin under his rough hands. Brennan gasped and her body arched toward his seeking, stroking hands, her head falling back and inadvertently breaking the contact of their mouths.

"You are so beautiful it makes me ache all over just to look at you," Booth whispered, his husky words bringing Brennan's head back up, a beautiful, serene smile spreading across her face. Looking directly into her glazed blue eyes, he felt humbled by the love, the happiness and utter contentment he saw there then she blinked and those emotions were replaced with raw hunger and desperate need, the depths of which mirrored his, hardening his rigid body even further.

She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen in his life and he wanted to spend all night just looking at her, touching, lingering, savoring every centimeter of her luscious body and he promised himself he'd get to that. Later. Right now, he was hot and hard and so damn ready to be inside of her that he felt like his whole body was going to explode if it didn't happen soon and the heat in her eyes, the way her body was straining toward him told him she was just as needy as he. _He could most definitely take care of that for both of them,_ he decided, a purely predatory smile curving his lips as his hands began to move on her body and his head bent, his open mouth landing on her arched throat.

Brennan's smile became a gasp then a moan as his thumbs grazed the undersides of her swollen breasts, his hands quickly moving around to fully cup their lush weight, his thumbs flicking repeatedly over their straining tips. At the same time, his teeth roughly scraped against a very sensitive spot on her neck, his tongue flicking out to lick and soothe then repeat the process over and over. Every nip of his teeth, every stroke of his tongue sent uncontrollable shivers throughout her body, tightening her aching breasts and pulling her throbbing body tauter. Whimpering, Brennan arched her back, her hands grabbing at Booth's head, burying themselves in his hair and pulling his head toward her needy breasts, her hips rolling, grinding her throbbing core against his hard thigh.

Booth's deprived body was screaming at him to get her naked and flat on her back post haste, screaming it so loudly and insistently that he had no choice but to listen. His hands pushed the tank top up to her throat and his head lifted to finish removing it, accidentally dislodging her hands from his hair.

Making an inarticulate sound of protest at his resistance, Brennan's hands stroked down his chest and her nails scraped repeatedly over his nipples until they were as hard as her own. Capturing one between a thumb and forefinger, she lightly pinched and tugged, a move that she knew made him crazy, swallowing his moan as her mouth opened over his, her tongue invading his mouth and sliding alongside his. With a husky laugh, she allowed her other hand to drift down over his abdomen, her fingers tracing the delineated muscles and moving lower, her entire body throbbing with hungry, desperate need. Burrowing a hand into his underwear, Brennan closed her small hand around his huge hard on, the knot of need in her lower abdomen tightening and waves of moisture flooding her center at the thought of him pushing inside of her. Whimpering, her hips moving restlessly, she began to stroke his velvety hardness, her thumb swiping over the slit at its tip with every long, hard stroke.

A harsh, guttural growl tore from Booth's throat as he clamped his hand over Brennan's, stilling the strokes of his turgid length that were hurtling him toward orgasm faster than he wanted. Shuddering, his body screaming in protest, he dislodged her hand, pulling it from his boxers, his hold tightening when she immediately tried to grab him again. "Slow down, baby," he urged breathlessly, tearing his mouth from hers.

"I don't think I can," Brennan panted, her body restlessly shifting and twisting, seeking closer contact with his.

"I think you can," Booth encouraged, his open mouth sliding along her collarbone and moving lower.

"I don't want to then," she gasped and arched toward him, desperately wanting his mouth on her aching breasts. "Booth, I need…," her voice trailed off into a whimper as his lips closed around her distended nipple, sucking it deeply into his mouth.

"Me, too," he agreed hoarsely, moving to her other nipple and giving it the same attention. "God, baby, I need too," he reiterated, lifting his head and meeting her glazed, unfocused eyes, deftly urging her to lift her arms and stripping her shirt over her head, carelessly tossing it aside. Returning his hands to her waist, with a lift and a quick twist, he deposited Brennan flat on her back on the bed, just where he wanted her.

Blinking in surprise at the sudden change in position, Brennan eagerly watched Booth stand and rip his jeans and underwear off as if they were offensive to him in some way, her hot eyes running over his hard, muscled body like a caress. Her eyes landed on his jutting erection and she couldn't tear them away. He was beautiful, big and hard and hers, all hers. Her whole body tensed at that thought, desperately craving the feel of that part of him sliding into her, already knowing they would break the laws of physics, unconsciously grunting in protest when he bent forward and blocked her view.

Peeling the laughable excuse for panties down Brennan's long, long legs, Booth glanced up at her grunt and went absolutely still. He knew exactly what she was looking at and he doubted she was even aware that she was licking her lips in anticipation but the sight hit him right in the gut, hard. Hit him so hard, he could almost feel her lips closing around the head of his cock and sliding down, taking him deeper and deeper inside that hot, magic mouth, the sensation so real, his erection twitched in response. Jerking the panties the rest of the way off and throwing them over his shoulder, he spent a long moment just enjoying the view of her sprawled decadently across the dark green comforter, her auburn hair spread out around her head, her body moving restlessly, her eyes issuing an invitation to join her.

Accepting the invitation, he came down on all fours on the bed, crawling up her body, unable to resist stopping to drop a kiss on her lower abdomen and lingering. His tongue flicked out, tracing wet circles around her bellybutton while one hand combed through the damp, auburn curls shielding her center from his eyes and moved lower, his breath catching and his gut tightening painfully as he discovered how incredibly hot and wet she was. For him.

Brennan gasped and planted her feet against the bed, her hips lifting and twisting toward Booth's seeking fingers as they slid over her slippery flesh, grazing her engorged clit and lazily circling her outer folds. "Please, Booth," she whimpered, her hips bucking again trying to direct his touch where she needed it the most. Booth raised his head at the throbbing need in her voice and saw her head tossing restlessly from side to side, her hands clutching and releasing the comforter and he almost lost it then and there.

"It's okay, baby. I'll take care of you," he promised, not sure his harsh, strained tone was all that reassuring but it was a miracle he could even speak at the moment. Not entirely sure she had even heard him, he set out to keep his promise, sliding two fingers into her slick channel, his jaw clenching so hard he wouldn't have been surprised to break a tooth when her inner muscles clenched tightly around his digits and a rush of moisture coated them. He immediately picked up a hard, fast rhythm with his fingers, one that he knew Brennan especially liked, his thumb brushing firmly over her clit.

"Ah," moaned Brennan, her hips pumping frantically against his hand. "Booth, I…ah…need….ah…to…ah….come," she panted.

"I know the feeling," Booth groaned, his damp forehead dropping to rest against her equally damp abdomen, his hips instinctively pressing into the mattress, just the friction of the soft cotton comforter against his distended, sensitive flesh challenging his control.

Brennan heard him speak but she had lost the ability to understand the spoken word in the last few seconds, able to concentrate only on the unbelievable pleasure Booth's touch was bringing her. Every thrust of his fingers massaged her most sensitive spots, compounding that drugging pleasure, driving her higher and higher, closer and closer to what could only be a spectacular orgasm. Gasping for breath, little purring sounds of need escaping her throat, her hips continued to lift and fall in perfect rhythm with his fingers as she desperately grasped at what hovered just beyond her reach.

Booth shuddered as those sexy, breathy little moans of pleasure vibrated down his spine and traveled straight to his cock, his entire body tightening and aching with arousal. _God, he needed to be inside her but he couldn't make himself stop what he was doing long enough to make that happen._ He loved the way she smelled, the way she tasted, the feel of her under his hands and mouth, the way she responded to his touch and he couldn't resist exploring further. Never breaking the arousing rhythm of his thrusting fingers, he used his free hand to part her curls and bent his head, his lips closing around her clit and sucking hard.

"Ah…Booth…oh…ah," Brennan moaned, her body bowing upward, her hands flying to his head to urge him closer, her hips continuing to lift and fall as the familiar fluttering began in her lower belly and concentrated in her core. Teetering on the edge of oblivion, she felt Booth's teeth gently scrape over her clit and she fell headfirst with a high, keening cry. Brennan's eyes slammed shut and her hips moved jerkily as her internal muscles clamped and relaxed in deep, pulsating waves of acute pleasure that quickly invaded every cell of her body, drowning her in sensation and making her blind, deaf and dumb to anything but the deep, drugging pleasure washing over her. Or so she thought.

Booth wanted to be a gentleman and let Brennan ride out her orgasm but his willpower and control were shot to hell by the tightening of her internal muscles around his fingers and his lust fogged brain no longer recognized the word much less its meaning. He was operating on the purely primal level of an aroused male seeking relief with his mate as he pulled his fingers from her body and slithered upward, his open, seeking mouth licking and kissing every part of her body it came into contact with. Lingering at her breasts to flick her nipples with his tongue then suck them deep into the recesses of his mouth, he settled his pelvis into the cradle of her spread thighs, growling deep in his throat and jerking his hips forward when his erection grazed her hot, wet, outer folds.

Her body still pulsing from her release, Brennan gasped and arched her back as every pull and tug of Booth's mouth on her nipple strengthened those pulses, unbelievably reigniting the ravenous hunger to have Booth inside of her. Whimpering, her legs wrapped around his upper thighs and she lifted herself against him, his hardness rubbing firmly against her swollen clit and her slick folds, her hands going to his ass and trying to pull him closer still and, for Booth, it was too much and not nearly enough at the same time.

His hands moving like lightening, he hitched her legs higher around his waist, dislodged her hands from his ass and slammed them onto the bed beside her head, his fingers tangling with hers and with one rough push, he buried himself to the hilt in her hot, tight depths. "_God,_" he shuddered, dropping his forehead to rest on her sweaty shoulder, holding himself completely still, the feel of her scorching wetness closing so tightly around his needy, sensitive flesh making him want to pound into her hard and fast.

"Ah," Brennan moaned as he entered her, the feeling of being stretched, filled to capacity by Booth was simply incomparable. And, God, she wanted more, she wanted him to fill her over and over again, to make her crazy the way only he could, she wanted the release that could only be achieved with him buried inside of her. And she wanted it now. Tightening her legs around him, she rolled and bucked her hips, her greedy, grasping body, pulling him deeper. Lifting and turning her head, her teeth latched onto his earlobe and bit down just sharply enough to sting. "Fuck me, Booth," she ordered just before her tongue invaded his ear.

His fingers tightened around Brennan's and his hips bucked forward, pushing higher and harder inside her, hearing dirty talk come out of that usually prim and proper mouth never failing to rev his motor. Brow beaded with sweat, arms shaking with the strain of holding back, he slowly pulled almost out of her hot depths, and pushed back in with the same excruciating slowness but Brennan was having none of that. She arched against him, pushing her hips upward, grinding them against his pelvis and deliberately tightened her inner muscles around his hard on, the feel of those tight walls dragging against his aching flesh with every roll of her hips sending him completely over the edge.

With a guttural growl, he released her hands, one of his spearing into her hair, turning and lifting her head to meet his descending mouth. "You make me crazy," he groaned against her smiling lips just as his other hand grabbed one of the legs locked around him and shifted it to his shoulder. "Now, it's my turn to make you crazy," he growled, slamming back inside her hard, fast and deep. Brennan's entire body arched off of the bed and her mouth opened in a scream of ecstasy at his forceful possession, her center flooding with moisture and gripping his hardness even more tightly.

Booth's mouth opened over Brennan's, swallowing her scream and giving back a grunt of intense pleasure, kissing her passionately, possessively, his lips, teeth and tongue nipping and exploring, claiming and marking her as his. Pulling almost out and pushing back in with a hard, fast rhythm, Booth knew he wasn't going to last long but he just couldn't bring himself to care. He could tell by the hitch in Brennan's breathing and the way her body was bowing toward him that she was close and he would most definitely take care of her, then it was his turn. He could feel his orgasm gathering in his belly, skittering along his spine, tightening his scrotum, and, God, he wanted, needed, that intensely pleasurable release with every fiber of his being.

Whimpering, Brennan's hips lifted and fell frantically, matching Booth thrust for hard, pleasure inducing thrust, her mouth becoming more aggressive on his as her body tightened, every thrust, every brush of his hard chest against her erect nipples hurtling her toward another, even bigger, orgasm. Needing an anchor in the face of the mind numbing pleasure washing over her in waves, her hands found his chest, her nails scraping over his pecs and distended nipples before moving around to his back, clutching tightly and just hanging on as he drove her higher and higher.

Shuddering, feeling waves of acute pleasure gathering from every cell in his body and centering in his groin, knowing that holding back his own orgasm was no longer an option, Booth slid a hand between their joined bodies, his finger sliding through wet, auburn curls and quickly locating her swollen clit. Rolling it lightly between his thumb and forefinger, he tore his mouth away from Brennan's and lowered his head to her breasts, sucking on a pointed nipple and rolling it against the roof of his mouth with his tongue, his thrusts becoming harder, faster, almost frantic. Panting, eyes closed, head thrown back, the throbbing knot of need in her belly tightening painfully, Brennan bowed toward him, her body being buffeted by so many sensations at once that she couldn't think, she could only hold on and ride it out, hoping that she survived.

Seconds later, Booth's fingers tightened on her clit, lightly pinching and twisting while his teeth gently bit down on her nipple at the same time and she no longer cared if she survived. Her nails dug into the muscles of his back and her whole body jerked spasmodically as her center flooded with moisture and she suddenly exploded in a throbbing, shattering release that sent her to the edge of unconsciousness.

Feeling Brennan's most sensitive flesh tighten and swell, then begin to pulsate around his throbbing cock robbed Booth of any remaining control. Rearing back on his knees, he pulled her other leg up on his shoulder and came back down over her, supporting his weight on his extended arms, his hips pistoning as he drove himself as deeply inside her as he could get over and over again. Brennan whimpered and her hips jerked spastically as she felt Booth swell and lengthen inside her, every thrust extending her orgasm, sending shockwaves of pleasure radiating throughout her body. Forcing her eyes open, she watched as his features tightened, his head fell back and he bared his teeth in a grimace, felt him push deep one last time and hold there, felt the twitch of his cock as he emptied himself at the entrance of her womb and just that was almost enough to set her off again.

Shuddering, shaking all over with the indescribable bliss of the orgasm he had just experienced, Booth lowered himself to Brennan's side before his arms gave way and he fell on her, crushing her in the process. Turning on his side, he raised a shaking hand and brushed back tendrils of hair that were sticking to her damp cheek. "Are you okay?" he asked huskily, still panting for breath.

"Ummm hmmm," she purred, her sleepy, sated blue eyes already drifting closed. After the last couple of days, Booth knew she was exhausted. Combined with the workout they'd just had, she would be out for the count once she went to sleep. Smiling tenderly, he leaned over and planted a soft, lingering kiss at the corner of her mouth.

"You can't go to sleep yet," he prodded, nuzzling her ear with his nose.

"Why?" she asked around a yawn, not bothering to open her eyes.

"We have to get under the covers, baby," he explained patiently.

"I'm not cold," she returned instantly, the way she wiggled closer to Booth and snuggled against the warmth of his body belying that statement.

"Bones, you need to get under the covers," he nagged, grinning at the scowl that appeared on her face and the fact that she still didn't open her eyes.

"My legs don't work," she grumbled, snuggling closer and yawning again.

Laughing at her Parker like excuses and stall tactics, Booth slid to the side of the bed and stood. "Come on, baby, it'll only take a second," he promised, reaching down and pulling Brennan to her feet beside him.

"Booottthh," she whined, opening her eyes into slits.

"You'll get cold later," he assured her, reaching down to flip back the covers. "Besides, just think how shocked Angela would be if she came in and found us on top of the covers naked." He ushered her into the bed, happily climbing in after her.

"Angela can't get in because all of the doors are locked from the inside," Brennan informed him, waiting for him to get settled on his back.

"I wouldn't bet on it," snorted Booth. Folding one arm behind his head, he held out the other one to Brennan in invitation. "I do have to wonder how she would explain that one away," he mused, smiling as she scooted closer and snuggled against his side, laying her head on his shoulder.

"Hmmm?" she murmured, her eyes already drifting closed. Luckily, Booth knew that was Bones speak for I'm too sleepy to say the words but I don't know what that means.

"How would she explain away us being naked without acknowledging that we're a couple?" he explained.

"Don't know," Brennan mumbled against his shoulder, her hand coming to rest on his chest, directly above his heart. Suddenly, her eyes popped open and her head came up. "She stole my pants," Brennan blurted, sounding a little indignant about the incident.

"_Angela_ stole your pants?" he blinked at her in surprise and she nodded. "Why?" he asked in confusion.

"She said she found them mixed in with the soiled jumpsuits," Brennan sighed.

"Don't you believe her?" Booth queried, his eyes searching her face, his hand absently stroking her hair.

"I have no reason not to believe her so yes, I accept that explanation," Brennan assured him and Booth nodded his agreement. That explanation made a lot more sense than a pants thief on the loose at the dig site.

"Goodnight, Booth," Brennan murmured around a yawn, lowering her head back toward his shoulder.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Booth asked, his hand sliding into her hair and tilting her face up toward him.

"What?" she asked just a little too innocently to be believable, going so far as to flutter her lashes at him.

"Funny," Booth grinned, "but on the off chance that you have forgotten, I'm willing to give you a reminder," he offered chivalrously, rolling to his side and lowering her head until it rested on a pillow with him hovering over her.

"That is very courteous of you," Brennan praised, biting her lower lip to hold back a giggle.

"I'm a courteous kind of guy," Booth acknowledged solemnly, bending his head toward hers.

"And modest, too," she teased, not even trying to hold back the giggle this time.

"Umm hmm," Booth murmured, closing the distance between their lips and nudging hers apart, his kiss long, slow and very, very thorough. When he finally lifted his head, Brennan's arms were wrapped around his neck and they were both breathing hard. "Good night, baby, I love you," he whispered, gently stroking a finger down her cheek.

"Good night, Booth. I love you, too," she returned, repeating another little ritual that had developed between them during their time together, one she could never forget.

Settling back down on his side, Booth hooked an arm around her waist, pulled her back against him and closed his eyes with a sigh of utter contentment. Shifting into a more comfortable position, Brennan closed her eyes, exhausted but wanting to take a few minutes before she fell asleep to just enjoy the comfort, the peace, the joy, the absolute sense of belonging she felt in Booth's arms. Reveling in the knowledge that no matter what happened, no matter how bad things got, these arms would always be open to her and knowing deep in her heart that she would always find those things and much, much more in the arms of Seeley Booth, she allowed herself to drift off.


	43. Chapter 43

**Hello, people. I have a new chapter for you and would like to thank everyone for their reviews on the previous chapter. This chapter isn't quite as smutty as the last one but it does have its moments so I hope you enjoy it. Please remember to review either way. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Groggily, Cam extended one slender arm from under the covers, her hand blindly searching the nightstand beside the bed to shut off the shrill beep of the alarm. Groaning in frustration when she couldn't find it, she threw the comforter off of her head and dragged herself into a sitting position on the side of the bed, blurrily blinking and squinting until she located the annoying alarm. Silencing it with a satisfying smack, she rubbed a hand over her tired eyes. _God, she wanted to go home._

Hearing a movement from the other bed, Cam cringed and threw a look over her shoulder, releasing a sigh of relief when she saw that Daisy was only shifting restlessly and not waking up. Pathetic, she knew but she was at a complete loss as to how to deal with what had to be the perkiest, chattiest roommate on the face of the planet on a nonprofessional level. If Cam ignored her chatter, Daisy simply got louder and placed herself in Cam's direct line of sight until she finally snapped and said something extremely sarcastic or simply told her to shut up. And that was even worse because then Daisy slinked off to her side of the room, pouting and throwing Cam reproachful looks, making her feel like she had just kicked a puppy. _So what did she, in all her wisdom, do then? _She started a conversation with Daisy, God help her, and the ugly cycle repeated itself. It had gotten so bad that last night she had been horrified to find herself lost in a fantasy of smothering Daisy with a pillow in her sleep and had been so pleased by the prospect of a little peace and quiet that she had been a little afraid to go to sleep herself, concerned that her subconscious might act on that fantasy.

It wasn't helping matters that she had never been able to sleep in a strange environment and she was tired. She was also worried about Michelle. Even though her foster daughter was staying with people that Cam trusted, Michelle had been rebellious lately, testing the bounds of Cam's authority and Cam didn't like being away from her when they were having problems. She didn't think that Michelle would do anything stupid but you just never knew with a teenager and it was her responsibility to be there and guide her through these difficult times.

Preoccupied by her thoughts, Cam gathered her clothes for the day and tiptoed across the room, grasping the bathroom door handle and slowly, stealthily twisted it, her attention concentrated on Daisy tossing restlessly. Opening the door just far enough for her body to slip through, she darted into the bathroom, silently closed the door and leaned back against it, closing her eyes and allowing herself to relax. Seconds later, she became aware of the sound of the shower being shut off and the shower curtain sliding back and her eyes flew open in horror. Horror that lasted only a split second and then turned into intense pleasure with a healthy dose of lust thrown in for good measure as her eyes landed on a hard, muscular, tanned chest and moved lower. Unconsciously licking her lips, her gaze lingered on rock hard, washboard abs and she forced herself to go slow, building the anticipation of what she would see next.

"Is there something I can help you with, Dr. Saroyan?" came an amused voice and Cam's head jerked up, meeting laughing green eyes as Van Buren stepped out of the shower and leisurely reached for a towel, even more leisurely wrapping it around his waist.

"Oh, God," breathed Cam, her face flaming as shame, horror and embarrassment at being caught eyeing a man she was very attracted to like a piece of meat washed over her. "I'm…I'm…I'm…," she floundered, blindly feeling behind her for the doorknob, escape from this awkward situation her only thought.

"It's okay. It's my bad for not locking the door," Van Buren shrugged, slowly walking toward her, and Cam might have been touched at his attempt to put her at ease if she hadn't been so damned embarrassed. Desperate to escape, she almost sagged in relief when her hand connected with the doorknob with him only two steps from reaching her. Jerking the door open, she turned and fled, slamming the door shut behind her.

"Good morning," Daisy greeted cheerfully, sitting up in her bed and hugging her knees to her chest but the blood was pounding in Cam's ears so hard that she barely heard her. She did, however, clearly hear the opening of the bathroom door and the masculine "Ahem" from behind her. Squeezing her eyes closed, she took a deep breath and pasted her coolest, haughtiest look on her face before slowly turning with an eyebrow raised in question, ignoring the way Daisy was looking behind her with eyes full of interest. Haughty quickly faded into humiliation as she eyed the very sexy man leaning negligently against the doorjamb with a pale green thong slowly swinging from one extended finger.

"You dropped this," he grinned and she wanted to crawl under the bed and hide. Instead, she stiffened her spine, lifted her chin proudly in the air and marched over to him, snatching her underwear from his finger, blinking in surprise when his hand streaked out and caught hers before she could stalk away. "Oh and Cam, anytime you want a closer look, all you have to do is ask," he assured her huskily, his thumb stroking across her palm.

Unable to answer because her brain was too scrambled with lust to come up with words and she couldn't breathe, she simply stared as he winked, straightened, stepped back into the bathroom and softly closed the door in her face.

"Yuuummmyyy," sighed Daisy from her bed.

"Oh, yeah," whispered Cam, still staring at the bathroom door, in complete agreement with Daisy for maybe the first time ever.

Hodgins fought waking up, afraid he would open his eyes and the happiness, the contentment of having Angela in his arms would shatter, that he would find it was only a dream as he had so many times since their breakup. But not this time, he realized, as he came fully awake, his arms instinctively tightening and pulling her closer. This time she was there, where he had longed for her to be every second since the breakup, where she belonged, where he hoped she would choose to spend the rest of her life.

But he was scared, he admitted to himself. Being totally, completely, 100% in love with Angela didn't make him blind to her faults or his own or stupid enough not to know they had a lot of things to work out. They had been in love with each other the first time around and they had let Angela's first husband break them up. No, that wasn't true, Hodgins acknowledged with brutal self honesty, they had both let their fears of commitment, their doubts about themselves and each other push them apart. Greyson had simply been a convenient, ridiculous excuse for the fact that neither of them believed in "them" enough to fight for the relationship. And, if they didn't want things to turn out the same way this time, they had to do things differently. Biting back a groan when Angela shifted restlessly and her breasts brushed his bare chest, Hodgins was distracted from his thoughts. Struggling to ignore his hardening body, fighting the urge to put his hands and mouth all over her, he reminded himself that no matter how much he wanted to make love to the woman in his arms, he wanted to build a future with her more and he refused to do anything that reduced the chances of that happening.

The sex between them was incredible, one of the best things they had going for them. At the same time, it was one of the worst parts of their relationship, something they used to gloss over their problems, to avoid dealing with the real issues, counting on the way they made each other feel in bed to overcome anything else and hold them together. Unfortunately, they had already proven that it just didn't work like that and they couldn't let it become a crutch again which, to him, meant no sex until they dealt with some of their other issues. He had hesitantly mentioned his feelings on the subject to Angela last night and been pleasantly surprised and encouraged when she had laughed and said she had been thinking exactly the same thing.

They had spent most of the rest of the night snuggling and talking about rather inane subjects, simply trying to get to know each other again. They would get around to talking out their problems but neither wanted the pressure it would put on them to jump right into the big issues. They and their relationship needed to take things slowly, start back at the beginning, correct their earlier mistakes and get it right this time, both of them now understanding that they were working toward a shared future and both now wholly invested in achieving that future.

Brennan opened her eyes and looked directly into Booth's sleeping face, smiling tenderly at how boyish he appeared in this relaxed state. God, she loved looking at him, could spend hours studying his symmetrically pleasing features and his body, well, she always wanted to look at and touch his amazing body. And she did just that as he shifted onto his back, his arms thrown above his head, giving her an unobstructed view of his impressive physique.

Her eyes drifted down to his sculpted chest, her hands itching to reach out and touch all that smooth, tanned flesh, her mouth watering with the need to lean over and taste a small, dark already distended nipple. Restraining her impulses for the moment, she slowly scanned his flat, toned abdomen, unable to resist reaching out and skimming a single finger down those washboard abs. Lightly circling his bellybutton then tracing down to the edge of the corner of the sheet which barely covered his lap, her entire attention was focused on the erection tenting that sheet so much that it wasn't actually touching his skin except on one side. Shivering, breathing hard, her own nipples tightening in response to the signs of arousal in his body, Brennan was, as always, stunned at the intensity with which she responded to this man. They had made love twice more during the night but, even completely sated, it took only a look, a touch, a whispered word and she wanted him with a desperate need that was almost frightening.

And this time was no different, she acknowledged as her lower abdomen tightened and fluttered and her center flooded with moisture, preparing itself for his possession. With a wicked smile, she allowed her hand to slide under the sheet and slowly eased it from his body, doing her best not to wake him just yet. Despite the excesses of the night, her body was still protesting the famine of the last few days, urging her to take advantage of the situation just in case those conditions repeated themselves. In short, she simply couldn't wait to make love with him again. She knew he had been really tired last night but she didn't think he would mind being woken up early for this. Still, it never hurt to wake him in a way that was guaranteed to quash any complaints. Moving stealthily, carefully, she came up on all fours, leaning over and teasing his left nipple with just the tip of her tongue, her hair fanning out and brushing across his chest.

Booth came awake the instant her tongue touched his nipple but he kept his eyes closed, trying to feign sleep. It was a little game that had developed between them. It had started out with Brennan trying to gain what she referred to as a tactical advantage with her sneak attacks and she had been so disappointed that she couldn't sneak up on him that he had begun to let her, pretending to be asleep far longer than he actually was. It had then turned into a game of who can hold out the longest with her teasing him mercilessly until one of them couldn't stand it anymore and gave in. Booth wasn't ashamed to admit that he was usually the one giving in but he thought he might just give her a run for her money this morning. Her lips closed around his nipple and gave a light tug and he didn't even try to hold back a moan, arching toward her mouth, his hands clenching and unclenching where they rested beside his head to keep from making a grab for her. _Okay, so maybe he wasn't going to win this round, but it sure would be fun to see just how far she would go to win._

Brennan knew the instant he came awake, could feel the tension invading his previously relaxed muscles. The fact that he didn't open his eyes or greet her signaled that he wanted to play and she was good with that. She was feeling extremely playful this morning and would very much enjoy driving him to distraction while he tried to hold out. Smiling, her own desire increasing with each brush of her lips against his skin, savoring every inhalation of his musky, masculine scent, Brennan trailed her lips down his chest, leaving behind a broken wet trail where her tongue had traced over the muscles. Reaching his well defined abs, she allowed her lips to settle more firmly, using her teeth to scrape over them lightly, a single finger reaching out to trace the nerve on the underside of his erection. Groaning, Booth's hips jerked upward, his legs moving restlessly against the white cotton sheets.

Darting a quick look at his face to see if his eyes were still closed, Brennan inched her leg over until she was straddling his hard thighs. _Now she was ready to see just how long he could play raccoon, _she decided, scooting further down on his legs, her hand reaching out to close around his impressive erection. Grunting, Booth's legs shifted under her and his hips rocked upward but he gave no indication of being awake. That wouldn't last much longer, Brennan decided with an evil smile, bending over to run the flat of her tongue over the nerve she had just traced with her finger. All the way down then back up very, very slowly.

Booth's breath hissed out between clenched teeth, his gut tightened and his right hand reached for her without his permission. Barely managing to jerk it back before it grasped a handful of her hair, he allowed it to fall to his side, still trying to feign sleep just to see what she would do next. In the next instant, he found out. Her lips closed around the bulbous tip of his hard on and she sucked hard, her tongue swirling around it in fast circles, her hand slowly pumping the length of his hardness. Moaning, desperately wanting her to take him further into the hot depths of that magical mouth, Booth's hips bucked upward, his hand twisting in the sheet. _God, she didn't play fair_. _How the hell was he supposed to pretend to be asleep when she reduced his mind and body to mush in ten seconds flat?_

Eyes locked on Booth's face, Brennan gave into her own need and slid her lips down his hard cock inch by inch, enveloping him in moist heat with excruciating slowness, her tongue delivering darting, lapping licks to every part of it she could reach. Swallowing as much of his length as she could, she paused, her hand tightening and continuing to stroke the part that wouldn't fit in her mouth. Ignoring the throbbing ache between her thighs begging her to get on with it, Brennan hollowed her cheeks to apply suction and released him inch by inch with the same excruciating slowness she had taken him in.

"Jesus, Bones," Booth moaned, his hips coming completely off the bed, his hand tangling in her hair urging her to move faster, his eyes flying open to meet blue ones sparkling with the satisfaction of having won. Holding his eyes, Brennan gave him what he wanted, her head bobbing up and down more quickly, her agile tongue doing incredibly erotic things to his throbbing flesh, her hips rolling and grinding her swollen clit and slick folds against his hard thigh. Eyes rolling back in his head, Booth wasn't even aware of the gasping, grunting sounds of pleasure escaping his lips as his head feel back against the pillow and he concentrated on the indescribable feeling of her mouth and tongue slickly sliding over his sensitive flesh.

Every moan, every grunt of pleasure coming out of Booth's mouth seemed to hit Brennan directly in the gut and radiate downward, increasing the ache between her legs to unbearable proportions. It wasn't simple want, it was a need to join with him so deep that she felt like she just might die if he wasn't inside of her in the next 30 seconds. Giving his erection one last, lingering lick, she reluctantly released his hard on, replacing her mouth with her hand and began to slowly pump up and down, moving her hips upward until her center was poised over his erection. Then she simply waited for him to open his eyes and look at her, wanting, needing, to see that he needed this as much as she did.

Instantly aware of the loss of heat and suction around his throbbing hard on, Booth forced his eyes open with an unintelligible whimper of protest. And then he was whimpering again, this time with need as his gut clenched painfully when he saw her poised above him, her face flushed with arousal, her eyes dark and unfocused, her gorgeous breasts rising and falling rapidly with her breathing. _God, he needed to be inside of her._ _Now._ His hands instantly reached out to grasp her hips and urge her downward and she let him guide her, allowing him to slip inside her a couple of inches then her thighs stiffened and her descent stopped, her hand still gliding up and down his cock in long, slow strokes. "Please, baby, no more teasing," Booth moaned, tightening his hands on her hips and applying more downward pressure while pushing his hips upward.

With the smile of a temptress, Brennan countered his movements, not allowing him to sink any deeper into her hot, tight channel, reveling in her ability to arouse this man. Knowing she was going to come the instant he pushed deeply inside her, she swiveled her hips and clenched her internal muscles around his hardness, wanting to prolong the anticipation. "Don't you like it?" she gasped, arching her back, her hands coming up to cup her breasts, her fingers plucking at the distended nipples.

"_God, yes, I like it_," Booth shuddered, his eyes on her hands, his mouth watering with the need to taste and suck those succulent pink nipples. "But I need to be inside of you right now," he gasped as her hips gave a sharp jerk and he sank an inch deeper into her tightness.

"I don't know, Booth. I thought you were tougher than this, that you could take all kinds of torture," she teased breathlessly, her head falling back and whimpering when one of his hands slid between her thighs and began to stroke her clit in long, hard strokes.

"What about you, Bones? How much torture can you take?" he demanded huskily, raising himself into a sitting position, one hand sinking into her hair and pulling her head up to meet his descending mouth. "Can you take this?" he whispered against her lips, his pushing hers apart a little roughly, his tongue immediately sinking deep into the recesses of her mouth and withdrawing in an imitation of what he wanted to be doing to her with his body, his fingers continuing their slick slide across her clit.

Moaning and wrapping an arm around his neck, Brennan opened her mouth and allowed him full access, barely able to hold her position with the way her legs were trembling with desire. Almost out of her mind, not even remembering why she was resisting, Brennan continued to swivel her hips, her lips closing around his tongue and sucking hard and Booth almost lost it then and there, his entire body tightening with the need to just throw her down and take what was his.

"What about this?" he panted, tearing his mouth from hers, his hand tightening in her hair and pulling her head backward, arching her breasts toward him as his lips closed around a plump nipple, sucking it deep into the recesses of his mouth. Moaning, Brennan's hips jerked against him and Booth couldn't take it anymore. Releasing his hold on her hair, he hooked a hand behind each knee and yanked, fighting to hold onto what little control he had left and hold back his orgasm as she slammed down on him, the feeling of being surrounded and squeezed by all that tight, wet heat nearly his undoing.

Booth's hardness filling her completely, Brennan shuddered, dropping her forehead to rest against his sweaty shoulder, her hips rocking back and forth, now eagerly seeking the release she had been delaying just a few minutes earlier. But the angle of entry wasn't quite what she needed and her legs were trembling so badly she couldn't even bend them much less use them for leverage. Unable to find her voice and whimpering in frustration, her mouth opened over Booth's chest, planting hot, sucking kisses and nips wherever she could reach, her hands frantically racing all over his body, nails scraping over the spots guaranteed to drive him wild.

Shuddering, low, animal growls tearing out of his throat, Booth's hands moved to her ass, cupping, grasping, lifting her almost completely off of his erection before letting go and jerking his hips up to meet her uncontrolled descent. Sharing gasping moans and groans at the delicious friction, Booth did it again and again until Brennan was writhing against him, her hands locked around his neck to hold her upright, her head thrown back, thrashing from side to side, her inner walls fluttering around his flesh. Determined to hang on until she came, his hands cupped her ass again just as her head came up and she opened glassy, blue eyes, gazing pleadingly into his.

"Please, Booth," she whimpered, her voice a low guttural groan that vibrated down Booth's spine and went straight to his twitching cock, pushing him completely out of control. In less than a heartbeat, he had them flipped with her underneath him, hooking his arms under her knees and driving into her slick, tight depths. On the second hard thrust, she arched toward him, loudly calling his name as she came apart in his arms, her inner muscles tightening around his throbbing flesh, her hips moving jerkily, her entire body twitching. Looking into her eyes, seeing them dilate and lose focus, seeing the pleasure that he could bring her wash over her face, Booth managed three more thrusts and followed her into oblivion, calling out her name.

What could have been minutes or hours later, Booth became aware he was lying partially on top of her with his head resting on her chest, her hand combing through his hair. Immediately concerned he was crushing her slender body with his much heavier frame, he tried to move.

"No, stay," she whispered, her hand tightening in his hair, clamping down on the unreasonable fear that sometimes washed over her when her utter lack of control where he was concerned, the stark depth of her need, her dependence on him slapped her in the face like just now. Relaxing back against her, Booth's hand came up to stroke her stomach, loving this cuddle time, treasuring his freedom to touch her whenever, however he wanted, frowning slightly when she tensed under his caressing hand.

"Not that I'm complaining," he said softly, "but what was that all about?" They rarely missed a morning making love but it was generally long and slow and sweet, not the frantic coupling they had just engaged in. Brennan shrugged and continued to stroke his hair, her hand tightening and pressing his head back against her chest when he tried to raise his head to look at her which meant she didn't want him to see her face. Willing to let her have her way for the moment, he wasn't willing to accept that non answer shrug. "Nope, not buying it," he teased, his fingers lightly trailing to her side. "I'd like the real answer, please," he requested politely, his fingers curving and brushing over her skin.

"Don't, Booth, you know I don't like to be tickled," she giggled, squirming and grabbing his hand, trying to dislodge it.

"Then I suggest you cooperate. Quickly," he advised, his fingers fluttering over the only ticklish spot she had, drawing new giggles from her as she tried to push him off and roll away. Rolling to his side and propping his head on his hand so he could see her face, his arm across her waist tightened to hold her in place, his fingers tightening threateningly as he simply looked at her with a raised brow. She looked back mutinously. "I did warn you," he sighed sadly, his fingers immediately beginning to flutter against her skin. Biting her lip to stifle the giggles, she glared at him in challenge. "I can do this all day," Booth grinned. "Can you?" he queried, leaning down to rub his nose against hers, his grin widening when he could practically see the wheels turning in her brain, silently determining how long she could hold out. Unwilling to lose this one, Booth's fingers moved faster and faster and she lasted all of four seconds before she was shrieking with laughter.

"Okay," giggle, "I'll tell," giggle, giggle, "you," giggle, giggle, gasp. "Just," giggle, hiccup, "stop." Booth immediately ceased his torment, his hand coming up to brush the hair from her face. "No fair, Booth," she whined, her scowl losing some of its sting when she hiccupped.

"I'm sorry about the hiccups, baby," he apologized sincerely, dropping a kiss on her pouting mouth and then giving her an _I'm waiting_ look.

"Sometimes you make me crazy," she breathed in a rush, both of her hands gripping the hand he had moved back to rest on her abdomen and playing with his fingers, her eyes dropping to watch as if that was the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

Blinking in surprise and a little concerned because she had sounded like that was a bad thing, Booth gently disentangled his hand from hers and lifted her chin, patiently waiting for her to raise her eyes and meet his gaze. "I make you crazy because I tickle you?" he asked softly, seeking clarification.

"No," she sighed, "you make me crazy by just being you." There was no mistaking her disgruntlement now and Booth blinked again, having no idea how they had gone from mind blowing sex to this conversation.

"You're going to have to do better than that, baby," he sighed, brushing his thumb across her lower lip, "because I have no idea what that means."

"Sometimes I look at you and want to rip your clothes off and crawl all over you at the most inappropriate times," she began, struggling to find the right words to express her feelings, ignoring the pleased grin practically splitting Booth's face in two. "Sometimes all you have to do is touch me and I completely lose control," she confessed, raising troubled eyes to his.

_Ah, now they were getting somewhere_, Booth realized, dropping his forehead to rest against hers. They'd had variations of this conversation with decreasing frequency over the last six months and he wasn't really surprised it had cropped up now when they were all under so much stress. "Is that such a bad thing?" he asked gently, now knowing what she needed from him and glad to provide it.

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing, Booth," she quickly reassured him, her voice rising in frustration at her inability to clearly express herself.

"Then what are you saying, baby?" he prodded, knowing that she needed to say it out loud.

"It's hard for me to not be in control and sometimes it scares me how much I lose control with you, how much I need you," she admitted in a rush, avoiding his eyes.

"Hey, look at me," he insisted, brushing his nose against hers. God knew with her background she had every right to fear not being in control. "Are you afraid that I don't love you?" he asked softly, nuzzling her nose with his.

"No," she gasped, sounding appalled that he would even ask that question.

"Are you afraid that I'm going to leave you?" he queried, his thumb stroking across her cheek.

"No," she denied instantly, her voice full of conviction.

"Are you afraid that you don't love me? That you're going to leave me?" he murmured, his lips brushing the corner of her mouth.

"Of course not," she snorted, rolling her eyes, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Then what is there to be afraid of?" He raised his head far enough to meet her eyes.

"I know it's silly," she began only to be silenced with a finger across her lips.

"It is _not_ silly, baby," he reassured her firmly. "Sometimes I get scared, too," he admitted softly and her eyes widened.

"About me?" she mumbled around his finger that was still resting on her lips.

"Yeah," he sighed, going on to answer the question her eyes were asking before she even verbalized it. "Sometimes I worry about how much smarter than me you are, about how much more money you make than I do, stuff like that."

"But, Booth," she gasped, jerking her head to the side to dislodge his finger then looking back at him, "none of that stuff matters," she assured him earnestly.

"Exactly," he smiled, tapping her on the end of the nose with the tip of his finger. "The only thing that matters is that we love each other and we're willing to do whatever it takes to be together. Right?" Her head tilted to the side and he couldn't resist running his finger over that cute little furrow she got between her eyebrows when she was thinking hard about something.

"I concur," she whispered, a brilliant smile spreading across her face, her eyes softening and clearing of the earlier concern that had shown there.

"So, how about next time you get scared, you just tell me?" he queried gently and she nodded, still smiling. "And just so that you know, I very," his head dipped and his lips brushed across hers, "very much like the fact that," his lips came back, rubbing more firmly over hers, "I can make you crazy."

"You do?" she whispered against his lips as they settled on hers, his tongue tracing over her bottom then top lip.

"Umm hmm," he murmured, nudging her lips further apart. "I consider it only fair," his teeth nibbled on her lower lip, "because you have been making me crazy for years," his tongue lazily stroked into her mouth to slide against hers.

Moaning, Brennan's tongue matched Booth's stroke for stroke, her arms tightening around his neck, forcing herself to wait until he finished what he was saying before she attacked him. Making himself pull back and finish this conversation before they got carried away again, Booth rested his forehead against hers and smiled down at her.

"You've been making me want to rip off your clothes at the most inappropriate times, making me want to bend you over your desk or the table on the platform or any other nearby surface, appropriate or not, and have my way with you for years." Brennan's eyes widened more with each place he mentioned, the gruff growl his voice had become sending shivers down her spine, the sinfully wicked smile curling his lips robbing her of breath. She already knew that he'd had feelings for her for years but he'd never put it quite that way before and she found the thoughts generated by his words very arousing.

"Maybe we should try some of those things when we get home," she suggested breathlessly, her hands spearing into his hair and pulling his head down.

"I'm good with that," he assured her, his grin becoming, if possible, even more wicked. "In the meantime, there's a little something I want to show you in the shower," he breathed against her lips, his mouth opening hungrily over hers.

"Okay," she gasped, eagerly returning his possessive, demanding kiss, already losing herself in him, them, and not caring in the least.


	44. Chapter 44

**Hey, guys. Sorry for the delay. I've been a little distracted but that should be better for a while, anyway. Hope you enjoy the chapter. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Fifteen hours later, Booth walked into the greenhouse looking for his recalcitrant partner. Slipping his hands into the pockets of his green army jacket, he ambled toward the depression she was kneeling in that had gotten considerably deeper since yesterday, so deep, in fact, that he could barely see the top of her head. Grinning, he stepped over her perimeter of crime scene tape, knowing that it wasn't necessary but also knowing that no one had the guts to remove it without specific instructions from Brennan to do so. Shaking his head at how easily she unsettled the interns, her colleagues and well, pretty much anyone she came into contact with, he strode to the side of the grave. His face smoothing into lines of tenderness, he stood for a long moment and simply looked at her, savoring how happy it made him just to be in her presence.

"Bones," he called softly, "it's time to go."

"I just need a minute, Booth," she answered absently, brushing dirt away from something and leaning closer for a better look, the change of position raising her curvy backside into the air.

"Umm hmm," murmured Booth, his eyes on her bottom as he settled down to sit on the side of the grave with his legs dangling over the edge. "That's what you told Cam three hours ago, baby, so come on, chop, chop," he clapped his hands together twice, his voice turning firm.

"I'm almost done," she assured him, never looking up from whatever was so thoroughly holding her attention.

"Don't make me come down there and get you, Bones," he growled threateningly, biting back a laugh when she snorted, knowing that she was rolling her eyes even though he couldn't see her.

"Ooohh, I'm really scared," she muttered under her breath and Booth turned a laugh into a cough, making a mental note to have a chat with Parker about the phrases he was teaching Brennan.

"Hey," he objected, stretching his arms out behind him and leaning back on them, "I'm a scary guy," he assured her, trying to inject a note of outrage in his voice while biting his lip to keep from laughing when she snorted again. "I can be intimidating when I want to be," he assured her confidently.

"Umm hmm," she mumbled, brushing dirt from another spot now.

"I can be intimidating," he reiterated, smiling as she tried to blow a stray strand of hair out of her face, then reached up and swiped it away, leaving a streak of dirt on her cheek.

"I was agreeing with you, Booth," she finally turned her head and gave him the big innocent eyes and Booth snorted.

"Yeah, I can see how much I intimidate you," he sighed, trying to look disgruntled but only succeeding in looking like a pouty little boy. Biting her lip to hide a smile, Brennan laid aside her tools and stood up, never able to resist that expression.

"Do you want to intimidate me, Booth?" she asked throatily, pulling her gloves off and stuffing them into the pocket, holding his eyes as she walked toward him.

Straightening into a sitting position and scooting to the very edge of the grave, Booth grinned and raised his brow as he pretended to consider the question. "I don't know, Bones. It would come in handy sometimes and I might even like it," he teased, reaching out to clasp her hips between his hands as she stepped between his spread legs, her hands landing on his hard thighs.

"I think you're confusing intimidation and domination," she laughed huskily, her lips curving into a sultry smile that made Booth's gut clench, her eyes beginning to darken to the color that told him in no uncertain terms what was on her mind. Holding his eyes, she leaned forward and brushed her lips across his, her tongue darting out to slide across his bottom lip before retreating back into her mouth. Teasingly, her teeth tugged on his bottom lip and her hands slid slowly up his thighs then, using her nails, lightly scraped back down just as slowly.

"You could be right," he conceded on a low moan, his hands sliding up to clasp her face and tilt it further upward, his lips brushing over hers then settling in to nibble at the corner of her mouth.

"I usually am," she sighed, turning her head slightly so that he was nibbling on her lower lip and stepping closer until just the pointed tips of her breasts grazed his granite chest with every inhalation.

"Yes, you are," he acknowledged, his tongue tracing the inside of her bottom lip then moving to the top one. Groaning, his hands tightened on her face as her hands continued their up and down slide along the inside of his thighs, every pass bringing her very, very close to but never quite touching his straining erection. "It's not nice to tease, Bones," he rasped against her mouth, his teeth nipping at her bottom lip much less gently than only seconds before. _God, she could take him from zero to couldn't wait to be inside her so fast it made his head spin._

"It's only teasing if you don't follow through, Booth," she purred, her lips curving into a smile under his. "And I have every intention of," her hand suddenly settled in his lap, her fingers curving and dragging her nails down his hard length, "following through," she gasped, her tongue darting out to slide into his open mouth and glide along his, enticing him to deepen the kiss.

Shuddering, breath hissing out, growling deep in his throat, Booth slid one big hand from her jaw to cup the back of her head, his mouth opening over hers in voracious hunger. Moaning, Brennan followed the urgings of his other hand as it slipped down her back and stepped closer, flattening her swelling breasts against his chest, one hand burying itself in his hair while the other continued to stroke him through his jeans. Moaning, Booth's hand clenched on Brennan's lower back, grabbing a handful of blue jumpsuit when her lips closed around his invading tongue and sucked it deeply into her mouth, knowing that this was getting completely out of control and he needed to stop it before his men got back from patrolling the perimeter of the crime scene. Tongue tangling with Brennan's, Booth had to force his hand to let go of the ugly blue jumpsuit and move from her slender back to cover the hand that was still stroking his hard on and driving him insane.

Whimpering in protest, Brennan's fingers clenched in Booth's hair pulling him closer, trying to catch his darting tongue between her lips again. Moaning, she arched her back and ground her aching breasts against his chest, her stroking touch becoming firmer and faster. _God, she was hot and wet and she couldn't believe how badly she wanted to rip his clothes off and crawl all over him. _

Growling into Brennan's avid mouth, Booth's hand tightened over hers, his hips involuntarily jerking upward as the extra pressure required to still the movement of her hand sent shudders of pleasure up his spine. _God, she was killing him here_, twisting and pulling, trying to free her hand so she could continue the torture, every turn of her wrist, every flexion of her fingers sending fresh jolts of pleasure throughout his entire system, her mouth greedy and demanding on his. Wrenching his mouth away from hers while he still had the willpower to do so, his hand tightened around hers, firmly pulling it away from his groin and flattening it against his chest just over his racing heart and holding it in place with his own hand. Breathing hard, he dropped his forehead to rest against hers, the heat in her eyes and the breathy, needy sounds coming out of her mouth making it extremely difficult not to just pull her against him and pick up where they had left off.

"How about we get out of here and take this somewhere a little more private?" he whispered huskily, his thumb stroking soothingly over her soft cheek. Panting, using every ounce of self control at her disposal just to keep from attacking him where he sat, Brennan allowed her shaking body to relax against his, needing the support for the moment, nodding at his question because she simply didn't have control of her voice at the moment. Booth's eyes dropped and another low moan escaped his throat when her tongue snaked out to wet suddenly dry lips. "How about we do that now?" he urged, his hungry body demanding that he get a move on.

"Okay," she whispered throatily, stopping to clear her throat. "Just let me get my tools," she finished, still sounding more than a little breathless, stiffening her unsteady legs and testing their ability to hold her weight. Satisfied that she wasn't going to fall flat on her face, she straightened, her heart melting at the possessive look in his eyes, the tender curve of his lips as his gaze dropped from her eyes to focus on her cheek and his lips curling in amusement. "What?" she asked breathlessly.

"You are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life," he said softly, his smile once again turning tender, his thumb gently erasing the streak of dirt she had deposited on her cheek earlier. Brennan blinked, always a little startled when he said things like that even though he complimented her frequently, not even aware of the way her eyes glowed with pleasure and contentment. "Go get your things," he urged gently, loving that he could make her look like that, his hand sliding from her cheek to give her right shoulder a squeeze.

Hissing, face tightening with pain, Brennan involuntarily flinched, jerking her shoulder away from his touch, taking a small step backward, unconsciously rubbing her shoulder with her left hand.

"What's wrong with your shoulder, Bones?" Booth asked quietly and her blue eyes flew up to meet warm, chocolate brown ones filled with concern.

"It's fine, Booth," she smiled reassuringly, stepping forward and laying her palm flat on his chest. "It's just a little bruise. I'm fine, Booth," she soothed softly, dropping her forehead to rest against his, her hand cupping his cheek. "Let me get my things and we can go," she suggested, dropping a quick kiss on his lips and taking a tiny step backward.

"Whoa," Booth said firmly, his legs locking around her hips to hold her in place, his hands immediately going to the zipper on her jumpsuit. "Settle down, baby, I just want to take a look," he laughed, dodging her hands as she tried to slap his away from the zipper and efficiently pulling it downward, needing to see this injury for himself.

"Booth, you can't just take my clothes off whenever you feel like it," she scolded in exasperation, wondering when he had grown the ten or so extra hands he was using to get her out of her jumpsuit.

"Wanna bet?" he teased, his grin positively sinful, his hands gently turning her body until her back was to him. "Besides, you're not usually complaining when I'm getting you out of your clothes," he breathed into her ear, his teeth tugging at the lobe.

Shivering, tilting her head to the side to give him better access, she had to admit he had a point. She was generally just as anxious to get naked as he was to have her that way. Lost in the sensation of his lips sliding down her neck, she didn't even feel him ease the jumpsuit off of her shoulders or ease the wide strap of her tank top aside but she knew the second he caught sight of the reddish, purpling bruise decorating her shoulder.

"Ouch," he winced, the fingers of his right hand reaching out to stroke over the discolored flesh with aching tenderness, pushing the shoulder strap of her tank top completely out of the way so he could see the full extent of her injury. Spreading his fingers wide, he could cover the whole thing with his hand so, in his opinion that made it a hell of a lot worse than a little bruise. Damn, he hated to see her silky skin marred by even a scratch and it made his gut clench with anxiety to know that she was in pain, hurt in any way. "What happened?" he asked, his fingers still whispering over the bruised skin in feather light caresses.

"I bumped into the lab," she shrugged, her eyes following the hypnotic stroking of his fingers. There was a bit more to it than that but Booth was taking her injury much better than she had expected and she wasn't about to get him unnecessarily riled up. She would tell him later when he could yell in private.

"Want me to kiss it and make it better?" he offered, nuzzling her ear with his nose, his left hand sliding down and settling on her abdomen.

"Booth, there is no scientifically verifiable data that indicates…," her words were cut off by a husky chuckle and she raised her eyes to meet brown ones that were brimming with wicked promise.

"Trust me, baby, it will feel much," his teeth scraped lightly against the side of her throat, "much," an open mouthed, sucking kiss a little lower on her neck sent shudders racking through her body, "better," his deep, whiskey smooth drawl held even more promise of sinful delights to come than his eyes.

"Yes," Brennan gasped, her head falling back on his shoulder to give him better access to her neck, the muscles in her lower abdomen clenching as his fingers spread out and moved downward.

"Yes, what, Bones?" he teased, his teeth playing with her earlobe.

"Yes, I want you to kiss it and make it better," she moaned, pushing her bottom back against the hard ridge of his erection, suddenly wanting his lips on her skin more than she wanted her next breath. Sighing in anticipation, she allowed her eyes to drift closed and waited, whimpering when his lips ghosted over her skin as gently, as tenderly as his fingers had earlier. "Booth," she groaned, rolling her head on his shoulder, her hips rocking back and forth against his twitching hard on.

"Hmmm?" he growled, repressing a shudder as he made sure he kissed every inch of bruised flesh then moved back to her neck, the hand on her abdomen slipping past the waistband of the jumper and sliding lower, extremely disappointed to find that she was wearing pants today.

"It's not nice to tease, Booth," she whimpered, her arm curling behind her to force his mouth into firmer contact with her skin.

"It's only teasing if you don't intend to go through with it, baby," he growled, slipping the button of her pants from its mooring, his fingers inching downward. "And I have every intention of going through with it," his tongue stroked the sensitive cord in the side of her neck. "Every chance I get," he rasped, sucking on the same spot.

Breathy little moans spilling from her throat, Brennan's hips rocked back faster and faster, her free hand urging his further down her pants. Shuddering, Booth's fingers encountered springy curls just as he heard approaching voices. Hissing in frustration, Booth's head jerked up. "Give us a minute, guys," he yelled harshly, guessing it was the night watch team. Reluctantly withdrawing his hand from Brennan's pants, he turned her shaking form toward him and wrapped her up tightly in his arms, her face buried against his shoulder, his cheek resting atop her head, knowing if anyone entered, they would only see his back but not really caring if they did see his partner in his arms.

Shivering, shaking, her legs barely able to support her weight, Brennan curled into Booth's big, hard body, needing the support. Clutching handfuls of his t-shirt, she ignored the need to scream in frustration and tried to control her breathing, noting that Booth's respirations were rapid and shallow as well. "You have to stop taking my clothes off at work, Booth," she muttered against his neck, putting ever bit of disgruntlement she could muster into the complaint.

"I know, baby," he soothed, his hands smoothing up and down her back, ignoring his body's screams of frustration.

"I mean it, Booth," she grouched irritably and Booth was glad she couldn't see him grin as it wouldn't have been pretty for him if she had.

"I know you do, Bones," he agreed, barely managing to avoid a head butt when her head snapped up and she eyed him suspiciously, trying to determine if he was just humoring her. Grinning, he caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger, brushing his nose against hers. "So how about if we go somewhere a lot more private and I take your clothes off there?" he suggested huskily.

"I'm up with that," she sighed immediately, no longer caring if he was humoring her.

"It's down with that, baby, not up," he laughed, reluctantly releasing her from his arms. Holding onto his hands, she stepped backward until only their fingertips were touching and gave him a sultry smile.

"Up, down, does it really matter, Booth, as long as you're getting my clothes off?" Grinning, she dropped his hands and turned to gather her tools, putting an extra sway in her hips just for his benefit. Smiling, shifting to a more comfortable position, Booth allowed his eyes to roam her body at will and he had to admit that she had an excellent point. When he was getting her clothes off of her, not much else did matter.

"Would you come on already, Hodgins?" Angela asked over her shoulder as she stepped out of the lab, into the cool, dark night.

"Alright, I'm coming, Ange. Would you just please calm down?" he teased, following her out of the lab and grinning at the snap in her voice. He had opted to stay and continue running tests on some soil samples when the others had left for the night and Angela had chosen to stay and keep him company, sitting quietly and looking at a magazine while he worked. But for the last couple of hours she had been fidgety, growing more and more concerned that they had been abandoned and would be forced to spend the night in the lab.

"I know I heard someone," Angela muttered, taking a flashlight out of her pocket, cursing softly and slapping it against her palm when it didn't come on.

"Angela, we aren't going to get left here for the night," he soothed, coming up behind her and softly kneading her shoulders, biting his lip to keep from laughing at the disgruntled glare she was giving the flashlight as she shook it repeatedly.

"Damn straight," she muttered, her attention on the uncooperative flashlight, turning a baleful glare toward Hodgins when he gave a bark of laughter. "It's not funny, Hodgins," she snapped.

"I know, but, Ange, baby, they can't hurt you," he assured her, referring to the remains inside the lab.

"I know that, Hodgins," she snapped, debating on whether or not flinging the malfunctioning flashlight into the woods would make her feel better. Not, she quickly decided, it would just piss her off to have to go out there and find it.

"Then why are you so set against spending the night in the lab?" Hodgins asked, turning her to face him and taking the flashlight before she threw it.

"It's kind of hard to explain," Angela sighed, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning against him.

"Now why doesn't that surprise me?" Hodgins joked, jumping when she pinched his side and raised her head from his chest to glare at him. "Okay, okay, that was uncalled for," he instantly relented, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "I'm listening," he said softly, resting his cheek against the top of her head.

"When I first came to the Jeffersonian, the grossest thing I'd ever seen was roadkill," she began softly and Hodgins nodded. "And then I saw what Booth and Brennan deal with every day and it was gross and awful and every single day when I left, I told myself that was it. I wasn't ever coming back."

"But you did," Hodgins prodded quietly when her voice trailed off.

"Yeah, I came back," she sighed, "and the people there, Brennan, you, Zach became my friends and then my family and I couldn't just walk away. So I stayed and one day I looked around and realized that dealing with dead human beings didn't gross me out anymore."

"Isn't it a good thing that your job doesn't gross you out every day?" Hodgins frowned in confusion because she hadn't sounded like it was a good thing at all.

"Yeah, Hodgie, most people prefer it that way," she laughed, tilting her head back so she could look at his face.

"At the risk of getting pinched again, I gotta say that doesn't make any sense," he grinned, not that he was surprised as Angela's unique thought processes rarely followed a predictable pattern. "Was it not good for you?" he asked wiggling his eyebrows at the double implication of his words.

"Yes and no," she sighed, not even sure she could explain how she had felt when she realized that she had become inured to the awful things they saw in the lab. Grinning at Hodgins' face making, she gathered her thoughts and continued. "Yeah, I was glad I didn't want to vomit every time we got a new body but, Jack, I'm not like you and Bren. I'm not a scientist. I'm an artist who was drawing caricatures on the sidewalk and only took the job to earn enough money to go to Paris where I could study and draw beautiful things." Sighing, Angela saw Hodgins was trying to follow her but he just didn't get it and it wasn't his fault. They simply didn't see things the same way so there was no point in trying to beat around the bush, straight out it was. "I lost a piece of myself when I came to work at the Jeffersonian, Jack. And it was okay," she added hurriedly as he frowned and opened his mouth to speak, "because the things I gained more than made up for the loss."

"Like me?" Hogins grinned brushing a kiss on her forehead.

"Yeah, Jack, just like you," Angela laughed, her hands unconsciously rubbing circles on his back, her head snuggling into his shoulder.

"Ange?" he whispered softly.

"Hmmm?"

"That still doesn't tell me why you're so opposed to sleeping in the lab," he laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, hold your horses. I'm getting to that," she grinned against his shirt before lifting her head and meeting his eyes. "I love what I do, Jack. It feels good and right and I've made peace with the way I've changed inside to get to that point."

"Okay," Hodgins tilted his forehead forward to rest against hers.

"But sleeping in the same room with remains is my line in the sand, Jack. I just can't do it."

"I understand," he said softly his hands coming up to cup her face. "That would freak most people out."

"That's just it, Jack. I don't think it would freak me out. I think I could actually sleep and that's something I just don't want to know about myself," she sighed, biting her lip and looking at him anxiously as is she had just shared some dark, awful secret. Hodgins blinked then shook his head and laughed, very familiar with the concept of denying who you are to yourself.

"You, Angela Montenegro, are one very, very strange woman," he grinned, dropping a kiss on her lips.

"Says the bazillionaire who plays with bugs and slime every day," she chided, returning the kiss.

"Hey, what can I say? I'm charmingly eccentric," Hodgins teased, releasing her but keeping one arm around her shoulders, turning her toward the greenhouse. "So, how about we go find Booth and make sure we don't get left?" he suggested.

"How do you know it was Booth?" Angela asked suspiciously, looking around and not even seeing a vehicle although she was sure she had heard one arrive earlier.

"Come on, Ange," Hodgins laughed, pulling his flashlight out of his pocket and shining it on the ground so they could avoid the large patches of sucking mud left over from the torrential rains of the day before. "It's almost," he paused and checked his watch, "10 o'clock and Brennan is still working. Who else would it be?"

"You're right," Angela laughed. "You know, it would almost be worth sleeping in the lab to get to sleep with you again tonight," she sighed, leaning heavily against him.

"We could just ask them to switch again," Hodgins suggested reasonably.

"Yeah, we could," Angela sighed, "but that wouldn't really be fair since we would be the only ones getting something out of it," she finished morosely and Hodgins shook his head in wonder. He had made the choice to let Angela come to the conclusion that Booth and Brennan were together in her own time but seeing the usually perceptive artist being completely oblivious to something so obvious was becoming almost painful to watch. Besides, when she found out he had known and hadn't told her, she would kick his ass.

"Ange, I seriously doubt that Booth and Brennan will have a problem with the same sleeping arrangements we had last night," Hodgins began, wondering if she would even believe him if he flat out told her the truth.

"I don't know, Hodgie," Angela returned doubtfully, "Bren is kind of private and I doubt she really likes sharing a room with a guy, even if it is Booth. You were right, it was Booth," she grinned, stopping just outside the doorway to the greenhouse and turned her head to look at him.

Stepping up beside Angela, Hodgins glanced inside, his eyes widening at the sight of Booth sitting on the side of the pit, Brennan almost completely hidden by the broadness of his back but it was obvious that she was standing very, very close. There was such an intimate feel to the scene that Hodgins turned his expectant gaze to Angela's face, waiting for her to start squealing at any moment. Instead, she turned her attention back to the couple and started to step into the greenhouse. Incredulous, Hodgins caught her arm and pulled her to a stop. "Ange, look at them," he demanded, pointing toward Booth and Brennan when she turned a questioning gaze toward him.

"I am looking at them, Hodgie," Angela assured him and he wanted to beat his head against the nearest tree at her dogged refusal to _see_ what she was witnessing. It had gone so far past ridiculous that now it was just kind of sad and very annoying and he'd had enough.

"Okay, Angela," he said firmly, stepping behind her and resting his chin on her shoulder. "I want you to look at Booth and Brennan and tell me what you see."

Shooting him a disgruntled look, she obediently turned her attention back to Booth and Brennan. "I see them talking," she shrugged, turning her gaze back to Hodgins.

"Umm hmm, and if you hadn't totally bought into what Daisy said about them tricking us into believing they were together? What would you see then?" he asked softly.

Eyes narrowing, Angela did as requested and tried to assess the scene without those preconceived notions. Her view of Brennan was pretty much blocked by Booth's back but she could tell there was some sort of struggle going on between them which didn't prove anything one way or the other. So she kept watching, her eyes widening as Booth's head dipped forward and she could see Brennan's bare shoulder. "Oh." Booth's fingers began to stroke the skin of Brennan's shoulder. "My." Brennan's head fell back onto Booth's shoulder. "FREAKING." Booth's lips replaced his fingers on Brennan's bare skin. "GOD."

Feeling Angela stiffen and her whole body begin to vibrate, Hogins had the foresight to clamp his hand over her mouth and pull her a few feet away from the greenhouse before the shrill, screech that would no doubt shatter glass for a five mile radius escaped. Being careful to keep his hand in place over her mouth, he turned her to face him, a little surprised that her head didn't simply explode from the sheer volume of the strangled, oddly unnatural noises vibrating from her throat. "Calm down, Ange," he murmured, meeting huge, shocked brown eyes.

Angela blinked, looking into Hodgins gentle blue eyes and couldn't believe how very stupid, how gullible to Daisy's lies she had been. And the sad truth was she couldn't even blame Daisy for telling those lies, she, they, had deserved that and a whole lot worse for dragging the intern into their asinine and, apparently completely unnecessary, plan to get Booth and Brennan together. Heart sinking, her squeals of excitement suddenly drying up, she recalled Brennan trying to tell her and had she been a good best friend, offering support and congratulations? No, she had condescendingly refused to even consider the possibility that the partners were smart enough to get together without her pulling the strings. Her heart ached when she realized that what should have been such a special moment for Brennan, a moment when she told her best friend that she was building a life with the love of her life, a moment that was now gone forever had gone so horribly wrong because of her own ego. _Oh, God, how was she going to fix this with Bren? Was it even possible to fix messing up this bad?_

"Are you okay?" Hodgins asked softly, cautiously removing his hand from her mouth when she suddenly went silent. He couldn't make out much of her expression in the shadows but, from what he could see, she didn't look happy.

"We really messed up, didn't we, Jack?" she whispered, blinking back tears of remorse.

"Yeah, baby, we really messed up," he agreed, pulling her against him.

"So what are we going to do?" she asked and Hodgins rolled his eyes, not really surprised at the question. Angela just wasn't the leave it alone type but he didn't think she really had a choice on this one.

"Ange, I really don't think it would be a good idea to try to interfere…," he broke off with a muffled oomph as her small fist landed lightly in his stomach.

"I actually do know that, Hodgins," she snapped, a little insulted that he had thought otherwise. Hodgins laughed and caught her fist bringing it to his mouth and kissing it, very much liking spunky, snarky Angela. "I mean how am I going to make this up to Bren?" she asked softly, relaxing against him, allowing him to unfold her hands from a fist and tangle his fingers with hers.

"I don't know, Ange," he sighed and he honestly didn't. They had screwed up big time and would simply have to pay whatever price Booth and Brennan demanded for their interference. "You might want to start with congratulations then I think we should probably just leave them alone, don't you?" he suggested quietly.

"That doesn't feel like enough," Angela protested, "but I think you're probably right," she acknowledged seconds later.

"You can always look at the bright side," Hodgins suggested with a wicked grin.

"And what would that be?" Angela asked, tilting her head back with a throaty laugh.

"At least now you know they won't mind sharing a room," he dropped a kiss on her mouth.

"There is that," Angela agreed, wrapping her arms around his neck and opening her mouth under his.

"Oh, for God's sake, if you two can tear yourselves away from each other for thirty seconds, we need to get back to the lodge," Booth barked, spotting the entwined couple as soon as he and Brennan stepped through the greenhouse door.

Startled, Hodgins and Angela jerked apart, their eyes meeting. Recalling what they had just seen between Booth and Brennan, they both started giggling at the same time.

"What's wrong with them?" whispered Brennan, leaning closer to Booth.

"I have no idea," he muttered, "but I hope it's not contagious," he joked to Brennan, surprised when Angela's and Hodgins' giggles turned into guffaws. Rolling his eyes, he slipped an arm around Brennan's shoulders and started toward the SUV. "If you two aren't at the SUV in two minutes, you can spend the night in the lab," he called over his shoulder.

Still giggling, Angela grabbed Hodgins' arm and pulled him toward the SUV, knowing that she had a lot of ground to make up with Brennan and Booth but also knowing they were the kind of friends it was worth having. And she would do whatever she had to to make things right with them.


	45. Chapter 45

**Hello, hello, did anyone miss me? Thanks for all the reviews on the last chapter and I'm really glad that you guys enjoyed The Beginning in the End. This one is a little shorter than usual but I hope you like it. Let me know what you think. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine but I bet they wish they were considering what Fox and HH are putting them through at the moment.**

An hour later, Booth eyed Angela warily and wondered what the hell had gotten into her. After the giggle fest, she and Hodgins had shared from the crime scene all the way to the lodge, she had suddenly composed herself and become the perfect hostess. Leading them into the kitchen, insisting that Booth and Brennan be seated and serving then dinner, popping up to grab anything they might need and provide it before they could ask so many times that Booth was getting dizzy just from watching her.

Angela knew she was overcompensating but she couldn't seem to stop herself, the overwhelming feeling of failing her best friend demanding appeasement. Seeing that Booth's coffee cup was almost empty, she jumped up and grabbed the coffee pot, returning to efficiently refill everyone's cups, smilingly returning the pot to its stand.

"Okay, Hodgins, what the hell is up with all this?" Booth demanded, gesturing toward the table and keeping an eye on Angela, who had busied herself serving dessert for everyone.

"Angela does appear to be exhibiting an abnormal level of subservience," Brennan whispered, leaning forward. Luckily, Hodgins and Booth both knew that was Brennan speak for Angela is really freaking me out.

"What gives, bug man?" Booth asked again, his hand finding Brennan's thigh under the table and giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Hodgins bit his lip, feeling like a bug under a microscope with Booth and Brennan's gazes fixed on him. He wanted to answer but he just didn't feel like this was something that was his to share, certain that Angela would want to talk to Brennan, confirming that she knew and making her apologies privately. Fortunately, Angela interrupted before he had to answer.

"Here we go, everyone," Angela said cheerfully, sliding saucers filled with banana pudding onto the table and distributing them. "Eat up," she instructed, sliding into her own seat and digging in.

Following instructions, Booth picked up his spoon and dipped it into the smooth yellow pudding loaded with sliced bananas and vanilla wafers and topped with whipped cream. Slipping the loaded spoon into his mouth, his eyes closed in pleasure at the sweet, creamy taste sliding over his tongue. Opening his eyes, he found everyone else at the table looking at him in amusement. "What?" he demanded, "it's good."

"Oh, man, it is good," moaned Hodgins, taking a big bite.

"Umm hmm," murmured Angela, licking her spoon between bites.

Glancing at Brennan, Booth saw her holding her spoon and studying the concoction suspiciously. Grinning, he scooped a spoonful from his own plate and turned toward her. "You should really try this, Bones," he urged, teasingly holding the spoon to her lips and accidentally getting a little too close, leaving a dab of pudding on her bottom lip. Fighting the almost irresistible urge to lean over and lick off the sweet substance, he watched as her tongue darted out and swiped it up in slow motion, knowing the speed was done specifically to tease him. And it was working.

"Mmmmm, it is really, really good," Brennan purred, her eyes holding Booth's with a wicked glint. Opening her mouth, she leaned forward and engulfed the spoon, her lips closing around the cool metal and very, very slowly pulling her head back, sucking the dessert off of the spoon, chewing and swallowing very slowly. Her abdomen tightening at the flare of heat in Booth's eyes, Brennan's tongue flitted out to lick the spoon clean, her eyes making all kinds of wanton promises for later.

Shifting in his seat, Booth gave her a reproachful look, knowing it hadn't done a bit of good when her sultry smile became a grin and she dipped her spoon into her own dessert and repeated the process. Forcing his eyes away from the erotic sight, Booth was glad to see that Hodgins and Angela were so busy making eyes at each other they hadn't even noticed the byplay. Not that he cared if they saw him and Brennan flirting but it was a little embarrassing that she could tear him up so badly just eating her dessert. Turning his attention to his own plate, intent of finishing and ushering Brennan upstairs post haste, Booth's head jerked up as a hand slapped heavily against the swinging door and Fisher and Wendell pushed through, talking and laughing.

Catching sight of the group seated at the table, the two interns stopped in their tracks. His eyes flicking between Booth and Brennan with something akin to panic, Fisher spun on his heel and instantly disappeared from sight. Swallowing hard, Wendell's wide eyed gaze ricocheted between Booth and Brennan, his face flushing. "I…uh…um…I'm….uh…," apparently unable to complete his sentence, he, too turned on his heel and disappeared.

"Okay, Fisher has always been strange but what the hell happened to Wendell?" Booth demanded, raising a brow at the extremely strange behavior of the most normal squintern, his eyes moving between Angela and Hodgins accusingly.

"Hey, don't look at me," Hodgins objected, holding his hands up in a conciliatory gesture.

"Me, either," grinned Angela. "It's not us he's afraid of, Booth. It's you," Angela supplied cheerfully.

"Yeah, Booth, you can't blame the guy for not wanting to get shot," agreed Hodgins just as cheerfully as Angela.

"Wendell knows Booth won't shoot him," snorted Angela, looking toward Hodgins "but he's not so sure about whether you'll hit him," she informed Booth with a grin.

"What? Why would Wendell think I would hit him?" Booth's asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Oh, please, Booth, everyone knows how overprotective you are of Bren," Angela scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Ouch," she sqeaked, suddenly jumping so hard her chair scooted back a couple of inches. "Hey, who just kicked me?" she demanded, glaring at Booth and Brennan while reaching under the table to rub her stinging shin.

"What happened that would make Wendell think I would hit him, Bones?" Booth asked quietly, turning a narrow eyed gaze demanding answers toward a fidgeting Brennan. Since he hadn't kicked Angela and Hodgins couldn't have from his seat beside her, Brennan had to have done it, obviously trying to shut the artist up and he was more than a little curious to find out what she didn't want him to know.

"Uh oh," whistled Hodgins, his wide eyed gaze flicking between Booth and Brennan.

"It was an accident, Booth," Brennan soothed, turning sideways in her chair to face Booth, her hand running up and down his forearm.

"What was an accident, Bones?" Booth asked with deadly calm and Brennan barely managed to hold back a wince, knowing from that tone of voice that his protective instincts were already roused and he wasn't going to take this well. _Damn, she hadn't wanted to tell him about this__ until they were alone but thanks to Hodgins and Angela, it appeared that she no longer had a choice._ Turning her head to give Hodgins and Angela a look to indicate her displeasure, Brennan winced when the muscles in her shoulder twinged, her left hand automatically coming up to rub her right shoulder.

Narrow eyed gaze focused on Brennan's shoulder, it suddenly clicked why Wendell would be afraid of him and Booth was surprised at the surge of outrage that rose up within him aimed at a young man that he actually liked and whom he knew wouldn't hurt anyone on purpose. But none of that seemed to matter to his more primal side, the side that was infuriated that someone, anyone, had hurt his Bones.

"_Wendell_ put that bruise on your shoulder?" Booth hissed incredulously, his eyes searching Brennan's face, trying to make sense of what he was hearing, his teeth grinding together as he tried to tamp down on the instinctive, insistent anger pouring through him.

"Um, Ange, maybe we should give them some privacy," Hodgins urged quietly, jerking his head toward Brennan and Booth. Angela nodded and pushed her chair back from the table, her wide eyes riveted on the partners as Brennan attempted to soothe the savage beast, craning her head back to see them as long as possible even as Hodgins pulled her through the doorway and allowed the door to swing closed behind them.

"What happened?" hissed Booth through clenched teeth, logically knowing there was a reasonable explanation and he should wait for it before getting angry but logic didn't have anything to do with how he felt about this woman.

"Booth, calm down," Brennan said softly, her hand going to his jaw and stroking it gently, feeling the rigidity in his jaw slowly start to relax, her attention so fixed on Booth that she barely noticed the departure of Angela and Hodgins. "It was an accident," she whispered, scooting forward until she was perched on the edge of her seat, her hand smoothing across his cheek and sliding to the back of his head to tilt it down until his forehead rested against hers. "It was an accident and I'm fine," she assured him, her beautiful blue eyes gazing straight into his stormy brown eyes, leaning in to brush her lips softly over his, just wanting to reassure and calm him.

"You're not going to distract me, Bones," Booth warned, his big hand rising to slide across her cheek and tuck her hair behind her ear even as his lips softened and parted under hers. The thought never having crossed her mind, Brennan blinked in surprise, a sultry smile curving her lips as she instantly decided to accept what she saw as a challenge.

"Wanna bet?" she asked, her tongue flicking out and slowly swiping across his lower lip.

"Bones," Booth growled warningly even as he turned sideways in his chair, his legs sliding to either side of hers and caging her in.

"Hmmm?" she purred, both arms coming up to circle his neck, her lips firming against his and nudging them further apart, her tongue lazily sliding past his lips and rubbing against his. _Damn, he was easy when it came to her_, Booth acknowledged as a growl worked its way up his throat and his anger instantly turned to aggression. His hand slid to the back of her head and he took control of the kiss, his lips and tongue demanding and possessive, kissing her like he might never get the chance to do so again. Moaning, Brennan leaned into him, fully participating in the kiss, instantly turned on by his aggressive ardor. Long, long minutes later, the need for oxygen forced them to pull apart and Booth rested his forehead against hers, breathing hard, his hand sliding from the back of her head to cup her cheek.

"Okay, you _can _distract me," he admitted softly, his own lips curving in response to Brennan's throaty laughter. "But I haven't forgotten that you owe me an explanation," he warned sternly.

"I know," she sighed, her hands sliding down to rest on his chest. "But you're not mad anymore," she grinned up at him and he couldn't help but laugh, hoping that she never figured out just how easy it was for her to manipulate him and put it to use because he would be toast if she did.

"No, baby, I'm not mad," he agreed, dropping a light kiss on her smiling mouth. "But that might change if I don't get that explanation soon." Straightening in his chair, he crossed his arms over his chest and regarded her with a raised brow.

"It really was an accident, Booth," Brennan sighed, straightening in her chair, her mind replaying the incident in question.

Just after lunch today, she had decided that the remains they had recovered during the morning needed to go to the lab so that they could be processed, freeing the bones up to be sent to the Jeffersonian in the now nightly transfer. Assigning Wendell and Fisher the task of collecting the necessary samples from the remains while she continued to supervise the digging, she had climbed out of the pit to transport the remains herself. It wasn't that she didn't trust her interns to accomplish the duty, exactly, but even though the rain had stopped a couple of hours ago, most of the ground between the lab and the greenhouse was a couple of inches of sucking mud. More than one person had slipped and fallen in it already and she simply wasn't willing to risk the compromise of any evidence ergo she would do it herself.

Closing the lid tightly on the container they were using to store and transfer remains, she had picked it up and strode out of the greenhouse, slowly making her way toward the lab. Peering over the top of the container, carefully considering the placement of each step, she had been only vaguely aware of someone approaching from behind her until a hand grabbed her shoulder in a painful grip. Instinctively swinging around to face whoever had put their hands on her and assuming a defensive stance with one arm raised, she maintained a tight grip on the box of remains with her other arm.

"Sorry, Dr. Brennan," Wendell apologized instantly, removing his hand from her shoulder. "I slipped in the mud and just automatically made a grab for you. I hope I didn't hurt you," he finished anxiously.

"I'm fine, Wendell," she assured him. "But you should be more careful," she chastised.

"I will," he promised solemnly, biting his lip to hold back a grin. Nodding, Brennan half way swung back around when her attention was caught by Fisher who was barreling down the slight rise toward them.

"Slow down, Mr. Fisher," Brennan called out but it was already too late. The intern had almost reached them when his foot hit a slick spot and almost slid out from under him. Attempting to regain his balance, Fisher's arms started wind milling around him and his speed increased at an alarming rate as he came closer and closer. Eyes rounding in horror, Brennan had known there was no way the intern could stop before he rammed into Wendell and there was no way Wendell wouldn't take her down with him.

Without a second thought, she had wrapped her arms protectively around the container she was holding, hugging it tightly to her chest, considering any injuries that she might receive from the impact less important than protecting the remains. She had briefly reconsidered that decision when Wendell had, with a muffled cry of surprise, crashed into her, sending her reeling against the side of the lab with teeth jarring impact, his off balance body following and crushing her back into the metal of the lab while the lid of the container painfully cut a ridge across the tops of her breasts.

Knowing that there was no way to tell Booth what had happened without upsetting him, upset her. Oh, she knew that he wouldn't be angry with Wendell and Fisher over an accident but he would be angry that she hadn't even tried to protect herself, had allowed herself to be injured to protect evidence. Luckily, she hadn't been seriously injured but she did have several bruises that Booth hadn't seen yet and he was going to like those even less than her explanation. Deciding she might as well get it over with, Brennan raised her head, meeting patient brown eyes and concisely outlining the sequence of events leading up to her injuries, unwilling to lie to him or not take responsibility for her actions even as she noted the way his mouth was tightening in displeasure.

Booth listened to the woman he loved as she calmly told him that she had been more worried about a pile of bones that her own physical well being and fought the urge to grab her and try to shake some sense into her. Dammit, did she not understand her own worth, how very important she was to so many people? Did she not realize that it caused him physical pain to know that she had been injured? That he felt guilty for not being there to protect her? Had she even considered how very badly she could have been injured? Would it have made a difference to her actions even if she had known she would receive serious physical injury? Somehow, he didn't think so and that sent his temper soaring, his throat aching with the need to yell at her for doing something so foolish, but that wouldn't do either of them any good. Knowing that his anger was out of proportion to the incident did nothing to cool that anger and he needed a minute to pull it together before they had this discussion.

"Booth, don't you have anything to say?" she asked softly, wincing when he met her eyes and she saw the agitation in his, heard his teeth grinding together. She wasn't particularly looking forward to the tirade she had no doubt was coming but she knew he would feel much better as soon as he released those negative emotions so she didn't hesitate to push him, just wanting him to feel better. "Come on, Booth," she encouraged, "I can take it."

Opening his mouth to tell her they would talk about it later, Booth was more surprised than Brennan at what came out. "Dammit, Brennan, what the hell were you thinking?" he growled huskily, still fighting the urge to yell, to shake her and demand that she never, ever deliberately put herself in harm's way again.

"I'm sorry you're upset," Brennan offered, thinking it probably wasn't the brightest idea to tell him she wouldn't change her actions even if she could, since him calling her Brennan indicated that he was already extremely upset.

Sighing, Booth reached out and clasped her face between his big hands, knowing she really hadn't done anything wrong but his gut was tied in agitated knots to know that she had been hurt. "I can't stand that I wasn't there to protect you and you got hurt," he tried to explain, his forehead drifting down to rest against hers.

"It wasn't your fault, Booth," she immediately objected, beginning to look agitated and Booth immediately, instinctively sought to sooth her.

"I know that here," he answered, tapping a forefinger against her temple, "it's here that I'm having trouble believing that." His big hand moved between them and spread out on her chest, right above her heart, his face softening as he gazed into her eyes. "I love you, baby, and that makes it my responsibility to protect you," he smiled softly, placing a finger across her lips as she opened her mouth to protest. "Whether you need that protection or not, it's a responsibility I take seriously and that is never going to change, so I suggest that you get used to it and just deal," he finished with a grin, using the latest phrase she had picked up from Parker.

"And if I don't," she challenged, her eyes narrowing, the gleam of amusement in their blue depths belying her attempt to look insulted or upset.

"Well, I guess my hair will either turn gray or I'll pull it all out and we'll keep having these delightful chats until you do," he grinned wryly.

"Well, it would be extremely painful and your appearance would be significantly altered by the loss of your hair," Brennan giggled, playing along with his exaggerations.

"Yeah, that would be bad," Booth agreed, his lips lightly rubbing against hers.

"And you don't appear to be particularly enamored of these conversations," she sighed, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders as he nibbled on her lower lip.

"I'm really, really not," Booth agreed, but felt the need to clarify. "Except for the kissing. I'm a giant fan of that," her assured her adamantly, feeling her lips curl into a smile under his.

"Me, too," she gasped when his tongue traced her upper lip and moved on to her bottom one. "But since I wouldn't like to upset you, I suppose I'll just have to deal. Does that make you happy?" she teased throatily.

"Everything about you makes me happy, baby," he reluctantly stopped playing with her lips and pulled back far enough that she could see the truth in his eyes, loving how happy and content she looked at the confession. "Now, how about we head upstairs so I can show you just how happy you make me?" he suggested huskily. Nodding, Brennan was instantly on her feet heading toward the swinging door. Laughing at her obvious eagerness, Booth quickly stood and followed her, always impatient to be alone with the woman who made him crazy and ecstatically happy in equal measure, not entirely sure which one he liked the best.


	46. Chapter 46

**Thanks for the reviews on the last chapter. This one is rather short but the next one is much longer and surprise, it just happens to be smut. It should be ready to post no later than tomorrow. Let me know what you think. Thanks, T.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Not surprisingly, they didn't make it upstairs together. The instant they stepped through the kitchen door, which Hodgins was guarding to prevent them being interrupted, Booth was approached by two of his men with issues that really couldn't wait. Catching Brennan's eye, they had a conversation without a word being spoken. Booth's eyes told her to go ahead and he would be right behind her as soon as possible. Brennan's eyes told him that she would be waiting, her lips curving into a soft, tender smile that stalled Booth's breath in his throat and he was, as usual, caught completely off guard when some ordinary word or gesture from her sent every iota of love he felt for her slamming into his gut.

Unable to tear his eyes away from his partner, he watched her progress across the room, stiffening when Wendell approached her just as she started up the stairs, knowing Wendell wouldn't do anything to hurt her intentionally but unable to stop the rise of his primal instinct to protect his mate. Resting his hands on his hips, Booth's eyes narrowed as Brennan and Wendell had a brief conversation then Wendell collapsed against the stairs, a smile stealing across his face when Brennan reached out and awkwardly patted Wendell's shoulder, knowing that she was reassuring the intern that she was okay, something that wouldn't even have occurred to her a year ago.

His eyes still on Brennan as she ascended the stairs, Booth frowned as she favored her right leg, wincing slightly as she raised it to the next step and her hand coming down to rub her hip. Hands fisting on his waist at the reminder that his Bones was hurt, Booth took a deep breath and fought down his rising anger, reminding himself that he couldn't change the fact that she had been hurt._ But he could most definitely provide his baby with a little TLC to relieve her sore muscles_, he decided, his lips curving into a wickedly sexy smile at just what form that TLC would take. Suddenly more than eager to finish up here and devote the rest of his night to making Brennan feel better, Booth watched her disappear into their room with Angela hot on her heels then turned back to his men, ready to handle anything they threw his way. 

Walking out of the kitchen behind Booth, Brennan was disappointed but not really surprised to see his men approaching with determined looks on their faces. With the expanded duties he had on this case, it was unusual for someone not to be waiting to speak to him and she knew that the extra responsibility and the fact that they had yet to uncover any real evidence was extremely frustrating for him as an officer of the law and as a father who couldn't give grieving parents the answers they deserved. Marveling at how tremendously lucky she was to have this wonderful, caring man in her life, her eyes drifted over his face as he quietly spoke to his men, never tiring of the opportunity to observe Booth in action.

Already having deduced that it was going to take him a little while to deal with the issues he was being presented with, Brennan was just about to excuse herself when he turned an apologetic gaze her way, his eyes telling he would be joining her ASAP. Understanding the demands of a career, Brennan answered with her eyes, telling him that she would always be waiting on him no matter what, a soft smile curving her lips. With one last, lingering glance, she turned and headed toward the stairs, feeling his eyes on her like a physical caress, so focused on that feeling that she didn't hear Wendell approach until he laid his hand over hers on the banister to get her attention. Blinking, Brennan quickly turned her head to survey the fidgeting intern.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Brennan," Wendell said, quickly removing his hand from hers. "I called your name twice and you didn't seem to hear me," he hastily explained, slowly nervously.

"It's okay, Wendell. Did you need something?" Brennan asked quietly, shifting on the step, finding her right hip and leg surprisingly stiff and uncomfortable after being seated for so long.

"Yeah," Wendell ran a hand over his close cropped blond hair, seeming to lose his train of thought. Sighing, Brennan shifted her weight off of her right hip and was about to repeat the question when the young man apparently recovered his voice and answered. "Dr. Brennan, I so, so, so sorry about what happened today. I would never, ever deliberately hurt anyone but I understand if you don't trust me around the site anymore. In fact, I wouldn't blame you if you fired me. I really, really hope you won't but I would understand. Are you sure you're okay?" Brennan blinked and tried to process the words into understandable sentences since Wendell had spoken even more quickly than a very excited Daisy ever did.

"I'm not going to fire you over an accident, Wendell," she told him firmly. "And I'm fine. I sustained only minor injuries which will require approximately 74 to 96 hours to resolve," Brennan assured him, glad that she had chosen not to individually catalog those injuries when Wendell sagged against the banister in relief, nodding his head repeatedly, mumbling "Oh, thank God" under his breath.

Genuinely feeling bad for the intern, Brennan knew she should do something to comfort him. She just wasn't quite sure what until the memory of how excited Zach had been when Booth had patted him on the shoulder twice with an open hand as she had instructed him to after Zach had explained the meaning behind the gesture to her popped into her mind. Zach's explanation hadn't mentioned this specific situation but since it was all she had, Brennan decided to go with it, reaching out and giving the intern two open handed pats to the shoulder. To her wide eyed surprise, Wendell immediately pushed off of the banister, straightened to his full height and looked her squarely in the eye.

"Thank you, Dr. Brennan," he said formally before turning and walking away.

_Hmmm_, thought Brennan, _she obviously hadn't given Zach the credit he deserved for his knowledge of interpersonal relationships. She certainly had never fully evaluated this little gem but now that she had seen that it worked remarkably well, perhaps she should design an experiment to calculate the specific situations it would be appropriate for, that particular knowledge could very well come in handy._ Her mind quickly designing the parameters of a suitable experiment, she ascended the stairs slowly, her hand unconsciously going down to rub her right hip at the pulling, stretching sensation when she used it to raise herself to the next step. She knew the exact mechanics of what was happening to cause those sensations but, unfortunately, there wasn't much she could do to treat the soreness and stiffness beyond ice and anti inflammatories. She would simply have to bear with it for the few days it would take her body to repair itself. Sighing with that somewhat depressing thought, she finally reached the room she was sharing with Booth and pushed the door open, her mind turning to how wonderful a long, hot shower would feel against those sore muscles. Closing the door behind her, she flinched as it was immediately flung open and bounced off of her right shoulder.

"Ow," she cried involuntarily, grabbing her shoulder and quickly moving away from the door, her eyes watching Angela reproachfully as she entered the room. With one glance, Angela instantly knew what she had done and she felt awful, having seen the severity Brennan's bruised shoulder earlier today.

"Oh my God," Angela gasped, her mouth and eyes rounding in distress, quickly moving toward Brennan, her arms opening to hug her then stopping when she realized that would cause her friend even more pain. "Oh, Sweetie, I am so, so sorry," she offered sincerely, looking uncertain for a long moment then finally reaching out to squeeze Brennan's hand in apology.

"It's all right, Ange. I know you didn't mean to," Brennan couldn't help but smile at the artist, never able to stay upset with her for very long even for things that were entirely Angela's fault.

"I really didn't," Angela assured her fervently. Nodding to indicate that she believed her, Brennan turned toward the bureau to gather fresh clothing so she could take the shower that was sounding better by the second now that she was feeling every bump and bruise from her encounter with the lab. Turning back with her clothing in hand, she blinked in surprise to find Angela stretched out on one of the beds on her stomach, her chin propped on her upraised hands and her feet swinging in the air.

"Did you need something, Ange?"

"I was kind of hoping we could talk," Angela grinned, extremely excited to hear all the details of how and when Booth and Brennan had gotten together, and Brennan barely repressed a groan. She wanted nothing more than to stand under a steaming shower until the hot water ran out and she didn't think that would be happening anytime soon if Angela was in the mood to chat. But Angela was always there for her and she really didn't feel like she could say no.

"What did you want to talk about?" she sighed, stifling a grimace as she took a couple of steps and eased her rapidly stiffening body down on the end of the bed, turning to give Angela the best smile she could muster.

"Are you okay?" Angela asked in concern, noting the care with which Brennan was moving and how very tired she looked when she turned to face her.

"I'm just stiff and sore," Brennan's shrug was barely perceptible and Angela knew the limited motion was to prevent pain in her shoulder. "It will ease up as soon as I get a shower," Brennan assured her and Angela felt like a big, selfish jerk, asking Brennan to sit here and talk to her so she could clear her conscience when her friend was obviously in pain. "So what did you want to talk about, Angela?" Brennan asked a little impatiently.

"I just wanted to see if you would mind sharing a room with Booth again tonight," Angela answered smoothly, knowing that Brennan just wasn't up to having this talk tonight and also knowing she was done being the best friend in name only. It was about damned time she started to actually earn the title.

"Sure," Brennan blinked, it never having occurred to her that she and Booth wouldn't be sharing a room from here on out. "Are you and Hodgins back together?" She asked, genuinely curious about the lives of her family.

"Let's just say that we're taking things slow and that's where we both hope to wind up," Angela sighed, rolling onto her back and staring at the ceiling.

"Are you happy?" Brennan asked quietly and it was Angela's turn to blink, not really used to hearing such perceptive questions from Brennan.

"Yeah," Angela grinned, rolling up to sit beside her best friend, "I'm happier than I've been in a really long time. And that's even without the sex," she mused absently and Brennan couldn't help but laugh at Angela's exuberant nature, the way she so openly shared her life.

"I'm really happy for you, Ange, and Hodgins, too," Brennan offered softly, her voice ringing with such sincerity that it brought tears to Angela's eyes.

"Thanks, sweetie," Angela blinked back the tears and bit back the need to tell Brennan that she knew about her and Booth, knowing that once that conversation got started, it was likely to last quite some time. "You should hop in the shower, Bren," Angela urged, standing up, "I'll just grab some clothes for tomorrow and get out of your hair."

"Ange, are you sure that's all you wanted to talk about?" Brennan asked, grabbing Angela's hand and pulling her friend to a halt. Once again, Angela blinked at the changes in her best friend that she had apparently been too busy with her plotting and scheming to notice taking place.

"There are a couple more things that I want to talk to you about that they can wait until tomorrow," Angela assured her honestly.

"If you're sure, I think I will grab that shower," Brennan rose from the bed even more stiffly than she had sat down.

"I'm sure," Angela nodded, reaching down to grab Brennan's left elbow and assist her to her feet, both of them laughing as they simultaneously realized that Brennan was moving like an extremely arthritic, old woman. Looking into her friends smiling face when she was standing, Angela carefully wrapped her arms around Brennan and hugged her as tightly as she dared without hurting her. "I love you bunches and bunches, Brennan," Angela whispered, her voice laden with emotion, so happy for Brennan and Booth that she could barely contain herself.

"I love you too, Ange," Brennan returned just as softly, her arms automatically coming up to return the hug even though she was a little puzzled as to the occasion. But, then again, Angela didn't really need an occasion or even a reason for most of the things that she did so Brennan just accepted it for what it was, a special moment between two best friends.


	47. Chapter 47

**Sorry about the delay. Musie and I haven't been on the best of terms for the last few days and this is the third rewrite. It is very, very long if that helps. Enjoy and please let me know what you think.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Her mind focused on how to minimize Booth's anger, it took the soft, sexy music several seconds to penetrate Brennan's consciousness but when it did, she immediately took an interest in her surroundings. Eyes slowly scanning the room, she took in the flickering candles, the turned down bed, the soft background music and instantly recognized it as Booth's handiwork, her body already responding to the intimate ambience and very much looking forward to whatever he had planned. Feeling his eyes on her but not yet seeing him, Brennan's eyes searched the shadows around the fireplace, slowly adjusting to the lowered lighting and spotting him just as he rose from the armchair and started toward her.

Breath catching in her throat, every ache and pain she had been nursing instantly left her and her mind cleared of every thought except this man. _God, he was the sexiest thing she had ever seen in her life_ as he slowly strolled toward her, his long, lean body moving with feline grace. _Was there anything sexier in the world than a gorgeous man dressed only in a pair of jeans hanging low on his hips? How was it possible for her mouth to go dry and water in anticipation at the same time? _ She didn't know and didn't particularly care as her eyes moved over the sculpted planes of his chest and abdomen, the shadows of the flickering candlelight making it appear a bronzed, shadowed work of art, her hands aching to reach out and touch, to discover anew if anything could possibly be as perfect as it appeared.

Booth rose from the chair and snagged the two glasses of wine he had already poured, his eyes running over the sexy creature dressed only in a towel who was looking around the room in wonder. _God, she was gorgeous_. He knew exactly what every part of her body felt, looked and tasted like but seeing her standing there so scantily clad with her skin glowing in the candlelight, his entire body ached to go on a journey of rediscovery, to reexplore every inch of her beautiful body with his mouth and hands just to make sure he hadn't missed anything. And that ache only intensified as he drew close enough to see the way her heavy lidded eyes were moving covetously over his bare chest, her face softening into lines of desire that made his gut clench, especially when the tip of her tongue appeared between her lips as if she were actually licking the skin of his chest. _Down boy_, he ordered his burgeoning erection, tonight wasn't about sex, tonight was about making his injured Bones feel better.

"Hi," he said softly, stopping in front of Brennan, gratified when it was an effort for her to pull her eyes from his chest to meet his eyes.

"Hi," she whispered, taking a step closer and giving in to the urge to touch, her fingertips feathering over his impressive pecs. "Are you trying to seduce me, Booth?" she purred throatily, holding his eyes as her touch firmed.

"Do I have to try now?" he teased, bending to brush his lips over her upturned, smiling mouth, knowing if his hands weren't full they would already be all over her, thinking for the first time that maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to set the scene so well when his intention was to provide nothing more than a relaxing massage.

"No, you don't have to try but it is a nice touch," she sighed against his lips, her hands sliding up to scrape along his nape and tunnel into his hair, holding his head still when he tried to lift it and pull back before the kiss got too involved.

"Baby, I wanted to..." he began to explain only to be cut off as Brennan's mouth nudged his lips further apart and her tongue invaded his mouth, her arms curling around his neck, her breasts flattening against his chest as she stepped closer.

"I want too, Booth," she gasped into his open mouth, her tongue becoming even more aggressive.

Moaning, unable to believe how much it was turning him on to be at her mercy like this, Booth couldn't do anything but respond to the kiss without dropping the full wineglasses he held and making a mess. Not that he wanted her to stop. God, he wanted her to keep kissing him like that, like she was starving for him and that hunger would never be satisfied for the rest of their lives but if he didn't stop her soon, she would be getting a hell of a lot more than a relaxing massage.

Using every ounce of willpower he possessed, he managed to pull his mouth away from hers, her moan of protest sending darts of desire shivering down his spine to settle in his groin. Groaning when her lips strung hot, open mouthed kisses across his jaw to his neck and her teeth began to nip at the spot right under his ear that drove him nuts, Booth managed to lean to the side far enough to clumsily set the wineglasses on the bureau. Straightening, his hands came up to gently cup Brennan's face and urge her to tip her head up to look at him.

"You are dangerous," he sighed when her smoky, blue eyes met his.

"So, you don't want to seduce me then?" she asked, her brow furrowing in confusion as her eyes darted around the room.

"Oh, yeah, I always want to seduce you," Booth assured her fervently, smoothing the hair back from her face. "But that's not what tonight is about," he hastily added as her mouth curved in a sexy as sin smile that had his gut clenching and her hands smoothed up and down his chest.

"Then what is tonight about?" she purred, her fingers curving and her nails scraping repeatedly over his tight nipples, her eyes daring him to resist her wiles and God, he wanted to just say to hell with it and drag her to bed but this wasn't about him.

"Behave yourself," he chided, catching her hands and tangling his fingers with hers.

"That's not what you usually say," she reminded him throatily, her eyes sparkling with wicked intent as she leaned forward and caught one of his nipples between her lips. Hissing, Booth couldn't stop one of his hands from fisting in her hair and pulling her closer, his erection growing harder with every tug of her lips. Laughing huskily, Brennan gave the nipple a lingering lick then tilted her face back up toward him, the heat in his eyes as he gazed down at her sending tingles racing down her spine.

"No, that's not what I usually say," he agreed huskily, bending his head to brush his lips against her soft cheek, fighting back the images of how bad he usually encouraged her to be that were flooding his brain. "But you're not usually hurt," he sighed against the corner of her mouth.

"Trust me, Booth, I'm not _that _hurt," she averred fervently and he couldn't help but laugh at her enthusiasm.

"Maybe," he conceded, his smiling mouth lightly brushing over her lips, "but trust me, Bones, you'll feel much, much better after what I have planned."

"Really?" she queried, beginning to look intrigued.

"Umm hmm," he murmured, nudging her lips apart and kissing her languidly.

"What do you have planned?" she asked huskily as his lips reluctantly left hers.

"Well, first I want you to drink this," he leaned to the side and snagged a glass of wine, swirling it under her nose. With a raised brow, Brennan took the wine and took a long sip, her face expressing her surprise at the crisp clean taste of the excellent merlot. "Good, huh?" grinned Booth, leaning over and grabbing his glass of wine. Usually a whiskey man himself, he could still appreciate the occasional glass of a good wine and this was exceptional, especially considering that he had obtained it out in the middle of nowhere.

"Very good," Brennan agreed, taking another sip. "What's next?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with excitement, like a kid about to get a present.

"Next, you are going to lose that towel and lay down on the bed and I'm going to give you the best full body massage you've ever had," he bragged, loving to see her look so excited.

"I can do that," Brennan agreed, nodding her head, a little surprised at how very good the promise of a massage sounded. "Then what?" she blinked up at him and Booth laughed.

"Then we get a good night's sleep," he deadpanned, hiding his grin as her nose wrinkled and she vigorously shook her head.

"I would prefer to renegotiate stage three," she announced firmly.

"Okay, we'll renegotiate when we get to stage three," he agreed, grinning and leaning down to nuzzle his nose against hers. Smiling in satisfaction, she handed him her glass of wine which he automatically took and her hands moved to his belt buckle to quickly undo it. "Um, Baby, what are you doing?" Booth asked.

"I'm taking your pants off, Booth," she replied patiently, not bothering to look up, her fingers moving to his zipper. Quickly transferring both glasses of wine to one hand he grabbed her busy hand with his and held it still.

"I can see that, Bones. Why are you taking my pants off?" he asked when she looked up at him in question, knowing why but also knowing that it wasn't a good idea and looking forward to what she would come up with to convince him. She could make some of the most ridiculous arguments sound perfectly logical.

"If you're going to go to the trouble of giving me a massage, I want you to be comfortable, Booth," she blinked up at him innocently.

"And you think that me being naked while giving you a massage will make me more comfortable?" he asked, biting his lip to hold back a grin as she tilted her head to the side and considered the question.

"Of course," she nodded, her hand sliding from under his and cupping his erection. "You won't be nearly as…constrained," she grinned, her hand moving up and down until, with a loud groan, he caught her hand and moved it away from his groin. "Besides, the base of the massage oil will permanently bond with the material of your jeans and they could very well be ruined. You know this is your favorite pair of jeans," she cajoled, hoping he didn't remember that the massage oil she had caught sight of on the nightstand was water soluble.

"And you know that if we both get naked and oiled up, the likelihood of you actually getting a massage is pretty damned small," he growled, his forehead dropping to rest against hers, the images of exactly what was likely to happen in those particular circumstances playing through his head and quickening his pulse.

"I'm willing to take my chances," she sighed as if she was making a great sacrifice and he wrapped his arms around her, wineglasses and all and hugged her tightly to him, burying his face against her neck, shaking with laughter at her playful theatrics. "God, I love you, Brennan," he sighed, finally getting his amusement under control and lifting his head.

"I love you too, Booth," she returned with a soft smile, always a little startled when he called her Brennan, which he rarely did. He normally stuck with Bones or baby and she didn't have a problem with either of those. She was and always would be his Bones, just as he had always been and would always be her Booth.

"Then be a good girl, take your wine and make yourself comfortable while I get the massage oil," he suggested, dropping a kiss on her smiling lips, the warm glow he always felt when she said she loved him aloud zinging through his system.

Nodding, she took her wine and sipped it as she walked over to the side of the bed, her eyes on him as he slipped out of his jeans, her eyebrow lifting in question when he left his underwear on but not voicing an objection when he just shook his head with a wicked grin. _Well, it wasn't like they were permanently attached and she had no doubt in her ability to get him out of those underwear when they renegotiated stage three of the night._ Having entirely forgotten her bruises, she untucked the towel from between her breasts and let it fall to the floor, leaning over to place her wine on the nightstand. Straightening, she placed one knee on the bed, startled into looking up when she heard the harsh intake of breath from Booth to see his eyes fastened on her breasts and darkening in fury. Looking down, she cursed herself for not being more careful knowing the feline was out of the carrier now.

"Booth, it really doesn't hurt," she began as he stalked around the bed and gently pulled her back into a standing position, turning her so that he could get a better look at her battered breasts.

"Oh, baby," he whispered, his whole body shaking in fury as he unclenched his right hand and reached out to run a shaking finger across the dark line marring her perfect breasts. Knowing it was useless to repeat that it didn't hurt, she just stood still and let him examine the bruising as closely as he wanted, her hand going to cup the back of his head as it bent for him to run a string of butterfly kisses along the imperfection. "I can't stand to see bruises on your beautiful body," he confessed, raising his head, his gut tied into knots of guilt and anger and frustration, needing to yell or throw a punch to relieve some of his anger and seriously pissed that it would be completely inappropriate for him to take that anger out on Wendell and Fisher.

"It was an accident, Booth," she soothed, the hand still on the back of his head pulling it down until his forehead rested against hers, desperately wanting to relieve the torment she saw in his eyes but not sure how. "I'm a little bruised and sore but I'm fine and that's the important thing," she assured him firmly and he was unbelievably touched by her trying to comfort him. "Right?" she asked, her voice quivering with uncertainty at receiving no answer.

"Yeah, baby, that's all that matters," he instantly agreed, smiling softly into her relieved eyes. Telling himself to get it together, that she didn't need his anger on top of already being injured and certain he had seen the worst of those injuries, he silently vowed to not outwardly react to any other wounds.

"My hip looks much worse than it is," Brennan blurted out, knowing there was no way he wasn't going to have a fit when he saw it and feeling the need to warn him in advance.

"Okay," Booth managed not to grit his teeth but his voice was a harsh enough to make Brennan flinch. "Why don't you lie down and let me take a look at it?" he suggested much more softly after clearing his throat a couple of times.

Nodding, she stretched out on the bed on her stomach and wiggled around to get comfortable and Booth couldn't prevent the grinding of his teeth or the clenching of his fists when he caught sight of the huge purple bruise high on her right hip. Teeth grinding together, he fought down the urge to march out of the room, find Fisher and Wendell and make them pay for hurting his Bones, even if it had been an accident, a little surprised she couldn't feel the rage rolling off of him in waves. But the fingers he reached out to trace over the discoloration were utterly gentle as were the lips he lowered to cover every centimeter of the ugly bruise with kisses, both conveying the absolute tenderness and love he felt for this woman.

"That feels better," Brennan sighed, trying to lighten the mood because she _could_ feel the anger radiating from his stiff body.

"Glad I could help," Booth smiled at her attempt to neutralize his anger, willing himself to relax as he turned his attention to the multitude of smaller bruises peppering her lower back, buttocks and upper thighs, each touch of his hands or lips accompanied by a soft sigh from her. Shivering at every brush of his lips and fingers, Brennan was fast forgetting about his anger and looking forward to this massage more by the second.

"Anything else you want to kiss?" she asked impishly when she felt him shift his weight and start to stand, knowing by the way his touch had lingered over the last several bruises that his anger was being redirected into passion and eager to help him expend that passion.

"You know damned good and well I want to kiss you all over," Booth growled into her ear, leaning forward, his hands landing on either side of her shoulders to support his weight. Turning her head, Brennan smiled directly into his darkening eyes.

"That could be arranged," she purred, starting to roll over.

"Un uh," Booth objected, one hand going to the small of her back to hold her still. "I promised you a massage and you're going to get a massage."

"Are you sure?" she asked, trying to catch his lower lip between her teeth.

"Yes, I'm sure, you little temptress," Booth grinned, using every ounce of his willpower to keep from rolling her over and devouring her on the spot, his previous anger now channeled into an entirely different direction since all that contact with her soft skin and rounded curves. "You just get comfortable and let me take care of you tonight, baby. I promise you'll enjoy it," he whispered huskily, bending his head to nibble on her earlobe.

"I'm going to hold you to that," she moaned as his teeth scraped across the skin below her ear, sending quivers of desire through her entire body.

"You can consider it a promise," Booth assured her huskily, unable to resist capturing her mouth in a deep, possessive, tongue thrusting kiss that left them both gasping for air when he finally forced himself to pull away.

"Is it time to renegotiate stage three yet?" she panted, her eyes dark and heavy lidded, more than willing to forgo her massage and get to the really good stuff.

"Consider it renegotiated," he said softly, gratified by the leap of excitement in her eyes and the way she instantly reached for him. "Soon, baby. Very, very soon," he promised, catching her hand in his and planting an open mouthed kiss in her palm. Nodding, she took a long, slow survey of his body, her eyes lingering on the impressive bulge tenting his shorts, the tip of her tongue flicking out to make repeated swipes over her suddenly dry lips, her belly fluttering in anticipation.

Feeling like he was being branded by the heat in her eyes, Booth couldn't tear his eyes away from her mouth, his erection growing harder and harder at the sight of her tongue darting in and out of her mouth. Reminding himself that he had a massage to give, Booth forced himself to stand and walk to the end of the bed, grabbing the bottle of "lickable", strawberry flavored, massage oil that heated up as it was rubbed in. Angela had given it to Brennan for her last birthday with heavy hints of who she should use it on and despite its tacky nature, it had turned out to be surprisingly good massage oil. _It tasted pretty darned good, too,_ Booth mused as he contemplated where to start. With a truly wicked grin, he quickly decided there was more than one way for this massage to relax Brennan and he knew exactly where to start with that.

"Roll over," he ordered huskily, settling himself on the end of the bed and squeezing some of the oil into his left palm, knowing it would only take seconds for her to figure out what he was up to, but that was okay, seconds were all he would need. Ignoring her suspicious look as she obeyed his command, he reached out to pull her feet into his lap as soon as she had settled onto her back.

"Booth," she began warningly, just as his oil slick hands covered her left foot and his thumb found the spot between her ankle bone and her Achilles tendon, slowly rubbing it with the perfect amount of pressure. The rest of her protest became a strangled moan as her body instantly responded to the manipulation of the erotic pressure point, a rush of pleasure washing over her, not quite an orgasm but close enough that she wasn't going to object to Booth continuing his ministrations.

His big hands sliding over every inch of the familiar territory of her extremely sensitive foot, kneading and massaging, repeatedly retuning to the pressure point, Booth's eyes locked on Brennan's face. Biting back a groan, his gut tightened almost painfully as her eyes fluttered closed and she bit her lip, her head pressing deeply into the pillow, exposing the graceful arch of her neck, the look on her face so close to the one she wore when she came apart in his arms that he found himself painfully hard and panting for breath. Eyes still on her face, his thumb found the pressure point on the bottom of her foot and repeatedly dug in deeply, feeling her slowly start to relax.

"That wasn't nice," she chided huskily, her smoky blue eyes opening to stare into blazing charcoal ones.

"Oh, I think you enjoyed it," Booth teased with a devilish grin, his hands moving to her right foot, his thumb brushing teasingly over the same pressure point.

"Don't you dare," Brennan gasped, squirming to pull her foot away and Booth raised a brow, his thumb increasing the pressure on that particular spot, enough to make her sweat it a little but not enough to stimulate the pressure point. "I thought you wanted to give me a massage and you know what's going to happen if you do that again," she cautioned a little desperately, holding his eyes.

_Oh, yeah, he knew exactly what would happen. As soon as the effects of the pressure point stimulation wore off, her arousal would be….enhanced and they would be rolling around on the bed in short order._ In fact, that was sort of the point of the exercise but he had promised her a massage so he relented, his thumb moving to the bottom of her foot and working on the relaxation pressure point. Smiling as he felt her calming under his hands, her eyes fluttering closed again, his eyes wandered over her lush breasts as they rose and fell with her even breathing, down over her flat, toned stomach, past the thatch of dark curls that guarded the gates to heaven, down those slender, mile long legs. By the time, he focused on her feet, his entire body was aching to just forget the massage and kiss his way up her delectable body.

"Turn over, baby," he said huskily, squeezing more oil into his hand, his eyes sweeping back over her curves even as she drowsily rolled over and presented him with her back.

Sliding off the end of the bed, he dropped to his knees, his hands reaching out and grasping Brennan's right leg just above the ankle, his big hands easily encircling the slender appendage and beginning to gently massage. Slowly moving up her calf, his fingers firming to work out the first knot he came into contact with, Booth couldn't stifle an answering groan when Brennan released a husky whimper that sounded far too much like the noises she made when they were making love for him to think of anything but the erotic things he wanted to do with her. Keeping a tight rein on himself, his hands stroked up her slender thigh, being extremely careful to avoid her bruises, his thumbs skillfully working out the knots and kinks he encountered, every moan and groan hitting him directly in the gut and moving lower.

Brennan didn't even try to hold back her moans of pleasure as Booth's fingers released knotted muscle after knotted muscle in her right thigh, her muscles fully relaxing for the first time since the accident. As wonderful as that felt, it wasn't entirely responsible for her moans, every stroke of his fingers against the inside of her thigh, oh so slowly moving higher and higher sent shivers up her spine and tingles of awareness straight to her center. The effects of the relaxation pressure point clearly wearing off, Brennan moaned in protest when his fingers stopped several inches short of where she wanted them and moved to her left ankle to repeat the firm, relaxing motions on that leg.

Settling himself on the bed, his legs straddling her calves, his hands returned to her supple thigh, his fingers trailing repeatedly over the spots that made her crazy, his eyes locked on the way her curvy bottom clenched and relaxed every time he hit one of those spots. Unable to resist, he let the back of his hand brush against her center, shuddering and gritting his teeth, when her bottom lifted, seeking harder contact with his hand and he felt how hot and wet she already was. For him. _God it never failed to make him hard, hot and ready to see how she responded to his touch and considering that he had already been all of those things, he wasn't sure how much longer he would be holding it together_. Reaching for the bottle of oil, Booth dribbled it directly onto the lush curves of her bottom, knowing his control was really about to be tested as his hands eagerly reached out to rub it in.

"Booth," moaned Brennan, shifting restlessly under the firm sensual stroking of his hands. Shifting her legs so she could roll over, she grunted in protest when she realized they were being held in place by his partial weight, giving him a pleading look over her shoulder, the hot, leaping flames in her eyes accurately reflecting the burning desire in her lower body.

"Patience, baby," he rasped, the undulations of her hips under his hands and the heat in her eyes ramping up his heart rate and libido in equal measure, causing his hands to instinctively clench on her firm flesh.

"I don't want to be patient," whined Brennan, reaching behind her back to try to grasp his erection, knowing that would push him over the edge and get her what she wanted, whimpering in disappointment when she realized she couldn't quite reach her target.

"That's cheating," Booth chuckled softly, fighting the urge to scoot his hips forward, desperately wanting to feel her hand closing around his aching flesh. But this wasn't about him. This was about her being hurt and him providing some TLC. Come hell or high water, he _was_ going to finish this massage. Sighing with regret, he caught her wandering hand and bent his torso over hers, gently guiding her hand to rest beside her head, pressing it against the bed in a stay there motion. "Massage first," he growled into her ear, meeting smoky, heavy lidded blue eyes when she turned her head toward him, unable to resist dropping a lingering kiss on her pouting lips.

Opening her mouth, Brennan eagerly returned the kiss, wanting to turn toward him for fuller contact but finding the completely helpless feeling generated by the way she was caged in by his arms and his big, hard body, unable to even pull her hand free, strangely erotic. Moaning as his hips settled firmly against hers, the hard bulge of his erection settling into the cleft of her butt, his chest coming to rest warmly against her back, Brennan whimpered at the need to touch, to have her hands and mouth all over his mouth watering body that rose sharply within her. Unable to do any of the things she was yearning to do, she pressed her mouth more firmly to his, her teeth grabbing his bottom lip, her tongue pushing aggressively into his mouth.

Groaning, Booth instinctively rocked his hips forward, grinding his erection against the softness of her hips, his hand leaving hers to tunnel into her hair, his mouth becoming a little rough and even more aggressive. Completely lost in the need to roll her over and sink his aching flesh into her hot, tight depths, Booth's hand left her hair and gripped her right shoulder to do just. But the hiss of pain she released into his mouth and her flinching away from his touch instantly brought Booth to his senses. Jerking his mouth away from hers, his hand came up to cup her jaw, his eyes searching hers for signs of how badly he had hurt her, angry with himself for his lack of control. "Oh, God, baby, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" he asked, his anger with himself rising when he noted the tightness around her mouth. _What the hell was wrong with him? She had been injured today and here he was all over her like some caveman who couldn't control his libido, getting rough with her when she needed him to be gentle. _

"I'm fine, Booth," she assured him, her free hand coming up to cover his and press it more tightly to her cheek, hating to see that he was upset with himself for hurting her, something she knew he would never, ever do on purpose. "I'm fine," she repeated, holding his eyes until he slowly nodded that he believed her. "But I would be much, much better," her mouth brushed against his, "if we could get back," her tongue darted out to trace his lower lip, "to what we were doing." Nudging his lips apart, her tongue leisurely explored his mouth and Booth let her have her way, eagerly participating in the kiss but refusing to allow it to get out of control again, determined that he would give her nothing but pleasure the rest of the night. Regretfully pulling his lips from hers, he rested his forehead against hers and smiled into her hungry eyes, his thumb stroking softly over her cheek.

"Okay, massage it is," he agreed, laughing softly when his words sunk in and her eyes narrowed.

"That wasn't what I meant, Booth," she argued, her tone full of disgruntlement.

"I know, baby," Booth soothed, brushing the hair out of her face, "but you're sore and I want to do this for you."

"Okay," she nodded, her face softening, unbelievably touched by his desire to take care of her. Besides, she was enjoying having his hands all over her and she had no doubt whatsoever that he would make the delay up to her later.

Grinning at her easy acquiescence, Booth brushed his nose against hers and leveraged his body off of hers using his arms, scooting back down her body to resume his previous position, trying to ignore his body's screams of protest. Reaching for the bottle of oil, he dribbled it over the smooth slopes of her back, his hands eagerly retuning to smooth it into her flawless skin. Body growing tighter and tighter at the breathy, whimpering moans Brennan was emitting every time his hands worked the kinks out of a sore, abused muscle, Booth gritted his teeth and reminded himself why he was doing this, holding onto his control with an iron will. A will that was seriously tested when he had to scoot forward to reach her shoulders, his aching erection, once again, settling against the soft, roundness of her perfect ass.

Breath hissing out between clenched teeth as she took full advantage of the position, her perfect ass lifting and rocking against him until his throbbing hardness nestled into the cleft of her butt cheeks, every lift and roll of those tormenting hips stroking the full length of his hard on. Shuddering, exerting willpower he didn't know he had to keep his hips from rocking back and forth, Booth's hands smoothed over Brennan's shoulders one last time and he forced himself to straighten and sit back on his heels despite his body's screaming protests at the loss of contact. Breathing hard, he willed himself to calm down, afraid he would cause Brennan pain from her injuries if he put his hands on her the way he wanted to right now.

Moaning, her body on fire from having Booth's hands all over her, the press of his hard length so close to where she ached to have it, it took Brennan a long minute to realize that Booth's hands were no longer touching her and that the enticing hardness against her bottom had been withdrawn. The massage might have relaxed her sore muscles but it had turned her entire body into a big, quivering mass of aching need and she was more than ready to move onto relieving that particular ache. Hearing Booth's raspy breathing, feeling the tension vibrating from his big body, she knew he was in the same condition, she just didn't know why he wasn't doing anything about it since the massage was over.

"The massage is over," she reminded him huskily and, she thought, helpfully, her entire body tightening and tingling at the thought of how he would be touching her now.

"Not quite. There's still the front," Booth rasped, knowing his willpower was going to be stretched to the limits to get through that without outright attacking her.

Eyes narrowing at the unexpected and unwelcome response, Brennan propped her torso up on her elbows, glancing over her shoulder, shivering at the heat pouring from his eyes as they focused on her ass, his clenched fists telling her that he was fighting for control. _Well, that wasn't going to last long if she had anything to do with it,_ she quickly decided, _as much as she appreciated Booth's attempts to make her feel better, she'd had just about enough of the teasing torment. _ Her lips curving into a smile as old as time itself, one that would have worried Booth if he had actually seen it, she quickly assessed the situation and came up with a simple plan to move this along into the really satisfying part of the evening.

"You missed a spot," she said softly, her hand reaching back to rub across her left hip, her eyes glinting with satisfaction when his eyes avidly followed the movement of her fingers.

"What?" he grated out, dragging his eyes up to meet hers, instantly knowing she was messing with him by the wide eyed innocent look she was giving him. So, she wanted to play now, huh? Oddly enough, knowing that settled him down a little, allowed him to take a firmer grasp on his control.

"You missed kissing a spot," she explained patiently, looking as innocent as she possibly could.

"Well we can't have that, can we?" Booth asked softly and Brennan shook her head. "Why don't you point that spot out to me and I'll get right on that?" he urged and Brennan shivered with excitement at the predatory look on his face as his eyes slowly slid down her body to focus on the hand on her hip. Not sure she could speak, she simply pointed to a spot then moved her hand when his fingers began to stroke over the unmarred spot.

Hiding a smile at her blatant manipulation, Booth bent his head, his lips softly playing over her hip. Gasping, Brennan's hips jerked up and Booth instantly decided he was up for a little playtime. Growling deep in his throat, he scraped his teeth over the virtually unmarked mound of her left hip. Reveling in the way her whole body quivered under the caress, his tongue snaked out and retraced the path of his teeth. Hands coming to rest on either side of her waist to support his weight, he trailed wet, open mouthed kisses to the small of her back, his tongue repeatedly tracing and dipping into the cute little hollow there before continuing up her back, tracing every vertebra with the tip of his tongue.

"No fair," Brennan whimpered breathlessly as Booth's teeth scraped along the back of her neck, his erection settling firmly against the curve of her bottom. Gasping, she pushed up against him, her breasts tightening and aching with the need for him to give them the same attention he was giving her back and neck, her abdomen tightening and quivering and her center throbbing with the need to have him inside her to take away that empty ache.

"You don't like it?" Booth laughed into her ear, his hot breath sending shivers down her spine, his teeth fastening onto her earlobe and toying with it playfully, his hips rocking back and forth, both of them groaning at the erotic, intimate contact.

"You know I do," Brennan fervently assured him, tilting her head to the side to give him better access to her neck, at the same time frustrated and extremely turned on by being completely at his mercy in this position. "Let me turn over," she pleaded, wanting to return the pleasure his mouth and hands were giving her, moaning as his mouth fastened onto the sensitive cord on the side of her neck, her back arching like a cat to allow his wandering hand to find its way under her and cup her aching breast.

"Are you sure you want to?" he teased, his hand cupping her heavy breast, his fingers rolling and tugging on the hard nipple, his erection sliding so close to where she ached to have it but not quite there. Completely surrounded by the warmth of Booth, his strength, his scent, his touch, Brennan wasn't sure of anything, not even her ability to draw her next breath. Hands fisting in the sheets, her back arched sharply, pushing her breast more firmly into his big palm, her hips rolling, just wanting him to slide inside her yearning body, no longer even surprised that her partner could bring her to such a state of need without even trying.

"Yes, I want to turn over," she moaned, turning hot, hungry blue eyes in his direction, her mouth trailing biting kisses along his jaw line while blindly searching for his.

"Ready to finish the massage?" Booth teased, knowing that for all intents and purposes, this massage was over. There was no way he was going to have the willpower to remove his hands from her delectable form and simply continue a massage, not when both of their bodies were screaming for relief but he couldn't resist messing with her just to see her reaction. He didn't have long to wait. Her head jerked back and she glared at him with narrowed, stormy eyes.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" she demanded incredulously, gasping loudly in surprise when, in the space of a heartbeat, she found herself lying on her back with him leaning over her.

"I did promise you a full body massage to help you relax and I wouldn't want to break a promise," he reminded her huskily, holding her wide, surprised eyes. "But, then again, I suppose there are different ways to achieve that relaxation," he mused, his still slick right hand slowly sliding down her throat, the eager anticipation lighting her eyes tightening his gut into a hard, hot knot of burning need.

"Yes, there are many ways of reaching the level of relaxation comparable with a massage," she agreed absently, her entire attention focused on the fingers stroking across her clavicle and moving toward her needy breasts.

"Umm hmmm," Booth agreed, "and I thought you might be open to exploring a few of those options in lieu of finishing the massage," he explained huskily, his hard thigh sliding between hers, bending his head to nibble at the corner of her mouth.

"I might be amenable to…," she gasped, her voice breaking off in a high, keening cry and her back arching off of the bed when his hand closed around her aching breast, his rough palm deliciously abrading the hard tip.

"Good choice," Booth growled. Suddenly no longer feeling at all playful, his lips aggressively settled over hers, his tongue plundering the sweet depths of her mouth, his hard thigh pressing into hard contact with her hot, wet center. And, God, the things he wanted to do to her as her hips bucked against him and her slick, swollen folds slid along his thigh didn't bear thinking about, not if he wanted to maintain even a shred of control.

Moaning, Brennan wrapped her arms around Booth's neck, her tongue dueling with his, whimpering in relief as his fingers closed around her throbbing nipple, rolling and tugging with exactly the right amount of pressure. The same relief she was desperately seeking with the rolling glide of her hips, every brush against her center, every hard grind of her swollen clit against his muscled thigh driving her higher, closer and closer to satisfaction.

His mouth eating at hers, their tongues tangling and battling for supremacy, Booth slowly trailed his hand down Brennan's abdomen, loving the way her muscles quivered under his touch, reveling in the fact that he could make her just as crazy as she made him. And right about now that was almost out of control crazy, he realized, as her arms loosened from around his neck and slid down to his chest. Fingers curving, her nails scraped over his nipples and he couldn't stop the instinctive surge of his hot, hard, aching body against her, his rock hard erection grinding into the softness of her lower abdomen, desperately wanting to get closer, needing the same relief he was about to offer her.

Her core throbbing painfully at the feel of his hardness pressing against her softer belly when she so desperately needed it somewhere else, Brennan managed the monumental task of tearing her mouth away from his. "Please, Booth," she whimpered, her breath catching on a long, low, guttural moan when his fingers slid through her damp curls and glided firmly across her sensitive clit. Hips arching against his hand, her head fell back against the pillow, her eyes slamming shut, knowing that she was already so hot and ready that it wouldn't take much to send her crashing over the edge into oblivion.

Eyes drawn to her face by the need in her voice, Booth's jaw clenched at her abandonment, her head rolling against the dark pillow, her hands grasping at the sheets beneath her, her mouth open and emitting throaty whimpers of pleasure. His own body racked by an all consuming need to be inside her immediately, his fingers slid along her slick folds, the moisture that immediately coated his fingers and the scorching heat radiating from her core instantly telling him how very close she was to the edge. More than ready to accommodate her needs, he slid two fingers into her slick channel, sharing a moan with her as her hips jerked sharply against his hand, forcing his fingers deeper and her inner muscles clamped down tightly on his fingers.

"God, baby," he shuddered, his eyes slamming shut, his sweaty forehead dropping to rest against her equally sweaty shoulder, fighting back his own need. Breathing deeply and forcing himself to focus on her, his fingers began to glide smoothly in and out of her slick heat, his thumb firmly stroking her clit. Panting, Brennan's hips lifted jerkily, her body tightening and quickly spiraling toward the release she so badly needed, completely lost to everything except the pleasure of his touch that was saturating every cell of her body.

Feeling her body start to bow under his, Booth opened his eyes and lifted his head, loving to see the look on her face when she came apart in his arms. And she was almost there, he saw as his eyes fastened on her face, utterly lost in the pleasure he was giving her. Not about to let her down, his fingers sped up, his thumb increased the pressure on her clit and he leaned down to take the hard tip of her neglected breast into his mouth, sucking hard, his eyes still locked on her face. And that was all it took.

With a high pitched cry, her body arched toward him, shaking convulsively, her hips jerking almost violently against his hand as she rode out the overpowering orgasm. His erection twitching with every rhythmic contraction of her inner walls around his fingers, Booth continued thrusting into her tight sheath encouraging her to ride out the orgasm, his movements gradually slowing as she collapsed back against the bed, her entire body shaking and quivering with the force of her fulfillment. Regretfully withdrawing his fingers, he released her nipple and laid a trail of hot, open mouthed kisses up her chest and over her clavicle, heading for her mouth. Trying to ignore his body's screams for him to get on with it, he got distracted when his tongue traced the cord in the side of her neck and she gasped, arching toward him. Lifting his head, he found her looking at him with sated, sleepy blue eyes.

"Hi," he murmured softly, his hand lifting to brush strands of hair away from her face and neck.

"Wow," she returned just as softly, blinking up at him, still a little bemused by the force of her orgasm.

"That good, huh?" Booth queried with a cocky smirk.

"Yes, it was that good," Brennan agreed, not taking issue with his smirk. As far as she was concerned, he was most definitely entitled to it.

"You know, there's plenty more where that came from," he assured her, his thumb tenderly brushing her cheek, his forehead drifting down to rest against hers.

"Really?" Brennan asked exaggeratedly her hands sliding up to his shoulders, just then regaining her senses enough to register that his steely erection was still pressing into her lower abdomen. Reminding her that she was the only one who had found satisfaction and she was eager to do something about that.

"Oh, yeah, lots and lots more." Booth assured her solemnly, his lips gently brushing over hers. "And I would be more than happy to demonstrate." Smiling under his lips at the eagerness in his voice, Brennan's hands smoothed across his shoulders and slid around his neck, her nails scraping against his nape, her smile growing wider at the way his body shivered under the caress.

"Wouldn't you rather I do this demonstration?" she asked throatily as his tongue traced her bottom lip.

"Baby, you know how much I love for you to demonstrate but tonight is about you. I want you to just relax and let me take care of you. I've got it covered," he avowed fervently. Having no doubt that he did, indeed, have it covered, Brennan didn't bother to argue. She simply tightened her arms around his neck and opened her mouth under his, eager to give him the same gratification that he had just selflessly given her.

Even more ready to receive that satisfaction than Brennan was to provide it, Booth took full advantage of her open mouth, his tongue slipping inside to slide against hers, exploring every nook and cranny and becoming more aggressive by the second. Her body already responding to his kisses with a renewed surge of arousal, Brennan moaned, her tongue teasingly sliding along his then retreating so he would have to chase it. Hands slipping from around his neck and spreading out over his chest, she sensuously explored the defined musculature that made her mouth water every single time she saw him shirtless, her nails scraping along the spots that made him absolutely crazy. _God, she loved touching him._

_God, he loved for her to touch him._ Anytime, anywhere. He didn't know what it was about her hands that turned him on so much but even her hand brushing against his never failed to send a small jolt of electricity through him. When those slender, capable hands were sliding over his hot, naked flesh those jolts turned into lightening strikes and shot straight to his groin. Already painfully hot, hard and ready, Booth groaned as her hands slid down his abs, his hips instinctively thrusting, grinding his erection against her hip, his taut body screaming for him to give it some relief but he still had it under control. Until her lips closed around his tongue and she began to suck rhythmically at the same instant her hand invaded his boxers and closed around his turgid flesh, her thumb swiping across its head. Those two sensations combined and just for second, he could actually feel her mouth closing around his hard on.

And he lost it completely. With a deep, guttural growl, one hand fisted in her hair, his mouth becoming ravenous, greedy and demanding as it moved over hers, his other hand moving down to assist Brennan with pushing his boxers out of the way. Shuddering at the feel of her hand sliding up and down his sensitive flesh, Booth fought the need to simply roll between her spread thighs and slide into her welcoming heat, knowing that there was some reason he should be gentle with her but unable to recall what it was.

But Brennan didn't want him to be gentle. She loved the aggressive way Booth's mouth was moving over hers, the way his hand was fisting in her hair, the way he so easily lost control with her. It was an incredible turn on to her that she could affect him so strongly and it never failed to rev up her libido. The involuntary, low growls she was dragging from Booth's throat, with every stroke of his hard length sent shivers down her spine and his aggressiveness just pushed it up another notch, making her lower abdomen tighten and flutter and sending rushes of moisture straight to her core. By now even more aroused than she had been before, she whimpered in relief when, together, they pushed his boxers down enough that he could kick out of them, one hand pushing against the side of his hip, urging him to move where they both wanted him to be.

Good at following directions, especially ones that would get him what he wanted, Booth eagerly shifted his position, his legs urging her thighs further apart so his hips could settle between them, never breaking contact with her avid mouth. Fingers still playing over his hard length, Brennan immediately positioned the head of his erection at her entrance, her legs wrapping around his hips and trying to pull him closer, a throaty purr that made Booth crazy and drove him to be more aggressive, more forceful, tearing from her throat when he slipped inside of her a couple of inches.

The feel of scorching wetness closing so tightly around the most sensitive part of his anatomy pushed him completely over the edge. With a muffled roar and one powerful thrust, he buried his throbbing flesh to the hilt in her welcoming body, his eyes slamming shut, his entire body shuddering as her sheath closed tightly around him, savoring this first moment of their joining, just as he always did and, he strongly suspected, just as he always would.

"Ahh," Brennan cried, tilting her hips and tightening her legs around him as he entered her, loving the feeling of being stretched to capacity that always accompanied his first thrust. Brought back to awareness by her cry, Booth's eyes snapped open and he tore his mouth away from hers, his eyes searching for any sign that he had hurt her but she didn't look like she was in pain. Slumberous, blue eyes barely open, cheeks flushed, lips red and swollen from his kisses, she looked like a woman consumed by passion and he couldn't wait to see and feel her surrender to that passion and shatter beneath him.

"God, you're beautiful," he whispered holding her eyes, pulling almost out of her with excruciating slowness and pushing back in much more quickly, knowing exactly what she liked and when she liked it.

"Boottthhhh," she moaned, her eyes flying wide and her body arching beneath him when he hit her g spot, her hands clutching at his strong back.

"Do you like that, baby?" he rasped into her ear, his teeth tugging at her earlobe, continuing the measured strokes.

"Yes," she gasped, her hips keeping perfect time with his, her body, once again, on fire and begging for release.

Shuddering with every thrust and withdrawal, the drag of her inner walls against his hardness almost too much, Booth's aching body screamed for some relief but he refused to relinquish his control and let himself go until Brennan was with him. Balancing his weight on one elbow, he used his free hand to cup her breast, kneading and weighing, lightly pinching the rigid tip, sucking on the spot on her neck that would set her like a bottle rocket, his speed slowly increasing and moisture pooled around his hard on.

Gasping and arching her back, seeking firmer contact with his chest or his hand or his mouth for her throbbing breasts, Brennan was caught up in a storm of all consuming need, her entire body fast becoming one big, raw nerve ending. Bombarded by wave after wave of pleasure from each contact point of her body with his, she became a purely sensate being, aware only of the smooth glide of his body in and out of hers, the stroke of his hand across her aching flesh, the touch of his hot, wet mouth, the scrape of his teeth over the most sensitive areas of her neck and chest.

"Booth," she moaned desperately, wanting, needing more but unable to focus long enough to figure out what, exactly, it was that she needed. Lifting his head at the plaintive cry, Booth was momentarily stunned by the stark need on her face but he recovered in seconds, knowing exactly what she needed and more than willing to give it to her.

"Hold on, baby," he urged, his free hand leaving her breast to hitch her leg higher up on his hip, the thrusting of his hips immediately getting harder and faster. Bending back to her breast, he took a hard nipple between his lips, rolling it against the roof of his mouth with his tongue, his hand sliding between their joined bodies, finding her distended clit and rolling it between his thumb and forefinger.

Hurtling toward the edge of oblivion faster and faster, Brennan's hands raced over Booth's body, finding all his trigger points with the familiarity of practice, her hips lifting and falling in perfect tandem with his, her attention so focused on the building feeling that she was going to shatter into a million pieces that she was barely aware of what she was doing.

But Booth was aware of every lingering stroke of her fingers across the sensitive small of his back, every flick of her fingertip over his even more sensitive nipples, every lift and fall of her hips, every clenching of her inner muscles. Every one of those things sent him spinning toward the loss of control so quickly that he knew there wasn't a chance in hell of stopping it. At this point, every cell of his body ached, vibrating with the need for relief and he desperately wanted that release.

Hand sliding beneath Brennan's hips, he tilted them just enough to change his angle of entry with no intention of altering his rhythm. But, oh God, when he pushed back inside her at this angle, he felt like he was deeper, even harder than he had ever been before, like she was hotter, wetter, tighter than she had ever been before. Not caring if any of that was or even could be possible, he simply wanted more of that erotic pleasure, slamming back into her over and over again. Whimpering, her entire body twitching and quivering, Brennan twisted her hips trying to get even closer, this new angle driving her toward the edge fast and hard. And then, suddenly, she was there. Emitting a strangled scream and convulsing around him, she was thrown into a world of bright lights and warmth, of radiating happiness and content. Feeling her clench around him pulled Booth right over the edge with her. Managing two more thrusts, he pushed as deeply inside her as he could get and stayed there, feeling like he was endlessly emptying himself into the center of her very being, just managing to roll slightly to the side and not collapse directly on top of her when his shaking legs gave out.

Every muscle in her body trembling, her heart racing, Brennan took shallow, gasping breaths, waiting for her body to settle down, knowing from experience that it would take a few minutes. Making love with Booth was always beyond fantastic but, God, that had been mind-blowing, maybe the best orgasm she had ever experienced but definitely in the top three. Feeling Booth's weight shift to her side, she made a little murmur of protest and turned her head toward him but she was simply too limp and sated to summons the energy to even open her eyes at the moment. What could have been moments or hours later in her state of euphoria, she was finally able to force her lids to lift, finding herself looking directly into sated brown eyes as he lay on his side facing her.

"Hi," he murmured softly. "Feeling better? Maybe a little more relaxed?" he teased with a wicked grin.

"Maybe a little," she teased back, not even aware of the soft dreamy look on her face, a look that she always wore after they made love, a look that Booth could sit and stare at for hours without getting bored, one that he knew with absolute certainty he would never get tired of seeing.

"A little?" he queried with a raised brow, loving to see her so relaxed, carefree and playful, projecting the very picture of affronted male dignity just to prolong the teasing. "I'll make you think a little," he growled, his hands reaching for her sides threateningly.

"No, Booth. Don't tickle me," she entreated, scooting away from him and warding off his hands with her own. Rearing up, Booth firmly planted a hand on the far side of her body to prevent her from scooting right into the floor.

"A little?" he growled, bending over her to place a kiss on her smiling mouth. "Surely you can do better than that?" he teased.

"Of course, I can," she snorted, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Let's hear it then," he encouraged, grinning down at her, that grin turning to puzzlement then understanding as she nodded and took a deep breath, her face instantly taking on a sultry, come hither look, and she batted her eyelashes at him flirtatiously.

"Oh, Booth, you are such a stud muffin that you make my little heart go pitter patter. You know you are the best lover, ever," she gushed, sounding so much like Angela that Booth's mouth fell open in astonishment. She liked to occasionally practice potential undercover personas to increase her repertoire just in case they were ever needed but he didn't realize she had Angela down so pat.

"Nice," he praised with a grin, "but please don't ever do Angela again when we're naked. It kind of creeps me out." Grinning up at him, she nodded. "And I think you meant studmeister not stud muffin." Bending his head, he nuzzled his nose against hers.

"No, I'm quite certain the term Parker used was Stud Muffin," she insisted firmly and Booth's head jerked up in astonishment.

"Parker? _My son_, Parker, taught you the term stud muffin?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes," she confirmed, blinking in surprise at his reaction. "Is that a problem?" she asked uncertainly.

"No, baby, it's not a problem," he reassured her, his hand brushing the hair back from her face. She and his son had a very strong attachment to each other and he didn't want to damage that in any way by making her think she had done something wrong. "I just think he's a little young to know stuff like that," he sighed, a frequent lament as of late.

"I understand," she nodded, knowing that he simply needed her understanding and support and not even tempted to give him an anthropology lesson on slang in subcultures.

"Are you ready for bed or do you want some more wine?" he asked softly, dropping a soft kiss on her lips.

"I need to take another shower but I want to just close my eyes for a few minutes first," she informed him around a yawn.

"Just wait until morning, baby. It's not like this stuff is toxic," he ran his finger across her clavicle then lifted it so she could see the oil glistening on its tip. "Besides, it might come in handy again tonight." Smoothing the oil over her lips, he leaned down and leisurely licked it off, indulging in a very thorough kiss in the process.

"Okay, I'll wait for morning," she agreed languidly, her eyes already at half mast. "I love you, Booth," she murmured.

"I love you, too, Bones," he returned and she allowed herself to slip into slumber now that that nightly ritual had been repeated. Sighing, Booth climbed out of the bed, pulling the covers over his sleeping partner and turning to blow out all the candles, deciding everything else could wait until tomorrow. Climbing back into bed, he pulled Brennan into his arms and she snuggled against him, her head resting against his shoulder. For several long minutes, Booth stared down at her beautiful face, not really able to make out the details in the darkness but he didn't really need to, he could bring her face to mind with a single thought. And that's what he did, his hand stroking her hair as he lay there silently thanking God for sending her to him and for giving him the courage to go after what he wanted, knowing that his entire world had been enriched by just having her in it. Filled with a peace and contentment that can only come from knowing you are exactly where you belong, exactly where you want to be, he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep with the picture of Brennan's laughing face on prominent display in his head.


	48. Chapter 48

**Thanks for the reviews, everyone. Here is the next installment in our little journey. I hope you like it and you know the drill.**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Cam stood under the hot spray of the shower and rolled her head, both hands rubbing her neck, trying to loosen the tension headache that had been lingering there since yesterday afternoon. God knew that Daisy's incessant chatter from the time they both entered the bedroom until Daisy passed out for the night was enough to make anyone consider making her the next corpse they were called out to exhume but that wasn't solely responsible for her tension. In fact, when Brennan had announced late yesterday afternoon that she expected the remains to be fully exhumed within the next 36 hours, Cam had found herself oddly ambivalent about losing her roommate. _Okay, fine, she had been ready to do a freaking jig at the thought of only having to put up with Daisy one more night but who the hell wouldn't be happy about that?_

The ambivalence hadn't come into play until her eyes had slid across the assembled group and she had spotted Agent Van Buren, lounging against the wall of the greenhouse making no attempt to disguise the fact that he was staring at her. The man had been flirting with her all freaking day, his eyes roaming her body as if he had been the one to see her naked instead of the reverse, but he hadn't actually come within ten feet of her since she had seen him in the shower that morning. And, as ridiculous as it sounded, she, Camille Saroyan, mature, sexually liberated woman of the world, had absolutely no idea what to do about that. Oh, she knew what she wanted to do about it and it involved naked, sweaty bodies and a lot of grunting and groaning but nothing was quite that simple for her any more. Her entire life had changed when Michelle had become her foster daughter, she had made a multitude of promises to the young woman and one of those promises had been about men.

Cam had never been into one night stands but she had also never been shy about going after what she wanted and had instigated many of the sexual liaisons she had enjoyed over the years. Unfortunately, with the exception of Booth, she had singularly bad taste in men. She was always suckered in by the eye candy only to later find they weren't quite what they seemed, they drank too much, they cheated, they wanted her to be their sugar mama, one had even hit her but only once because she'd had his ass thrown in jail immediately. For whatever reason it had always ended and she had been okay with that, not really looking for that someone to share her life with.

But this wasn't just about her anymore and she was finding that the prospect of satisfying an itch, even with someone she found so sexually attractive, just didn't hold the same appeal it once had. In part because she had watched the people around her pair off, Booth and Brennan, Angela and Hodgins, yes both couples had gone through some really hard times but it was obvious to her that they belonged together, that their partners' happiness was more important to them than their own, that they would find their way and do whatever it took to make it work in the end. And she found herself desperately wanting that for herself, wanting to go home after a bad case like this and find someone who actually cared that she'd had a bad day, who put themselves out there to make it better, who would be there no matter what, not just give her the short term oblivion of sexual relief.

Beyond that, she was finding the promise she had made to herself and Michelle, albeit silently, that the next man she was involved with would have the potential to lead to something long term and stable, surprisingly binding. She knew could drag Van Buren off to bed and she had no doubt that the sex would be terrific but her gut was telling her that the guilt she would feel for breaking that promise would be even worse than her guilt over trying to interfere in Booth and Brennan's relationship. And that was still eating her alive so she just wasn't willing to risk it, even with a man who made her mouth water just walking across a room. Because of her promise, she couldn't go to him but that didn't necessarily mean that she had to exercise an unnatural control if he came to her. Hell, yeah it was semantics but it was something she could live with so no judgment please.

To that end, she had deliberately left the door leading to Van Buren's room unlocked when she had crawled into the shower, wanting him to get a good look at what he would be missing. Showtime, she thought, a wicked smile curving her lips as she heard the almost inaudible snick of the opening bathroom door that she had been awaiting. Belly fluttering in anticipation of Van Buren's reaction, she quickly turned off the shower and pulled back the shower curtain, taking her time about turning her head toward the door, struggling to get just the right amount of surprise and outrage in her expression.

"Shit," she shrieked, the appropriate amount of outrage and surprise no longer a problem as her eyes fell on her visitor. "What the hell are you doing in here, Sweets?" she yelled, her hands grabbing for the clear shower curtain and trying to wrap it around her so quickly that she tripped over her own feet and had to let go to catch herself, once again giving Sweets full frontal Cam.

"I'm…I….the …door…um," Sweets stuttered, his Adams apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed repeatedly, his eyes plastered on her body.

"Get out of here," Cam screamed making another grab at the shower curtain.

"Problems?" came an amused, smoky voice from behind Sweets as the missing man of the hour strolled into the bathroom as if he hadn't a care in the world, his amusement clearly increasing as he took in the scene before him. Finally managing to wrap the shower curtain around her, Cam wanted to crawl under something and never, ever come out.

"The door was unlocked," Sweets suddenly gasped, his hand belatedly flying up to cover his wide eyes.

"Really?" drawled Van Buren, shooting Cam a chastising look while steering the visually challenged Sweets back into the room they shared.

"It really was," Sweets insisted, nodding his head emphatically.

"I believe you," Van Buren assured the shaken young man, gently pushing him through the door then closing and deliberately locking it behind him. Turning back to the wide eyed pathologist who was simply standing there wrapped in a shower curtain that hid nothing from his roving eyes, he took in every inch of her gorgeous body. Ignoring the tightening of his own body in response, he pushed away from the door and advanced on her with a smooth rolling glide that instantly brought her eyes gliding down the well developed chest to focus on the hips encased in low hung sleep pants. "You know, Cam, I find it hard to believe that you left the door unlocked by accident," he murmured, his lips twitching when she flinched in embarrassment at the words. "But I find it even more difficult to believe that you really wanted that little boy to see you naked."

"_I did not_," Cam hissed furiously, her head jerking up proudly and pinning him with blazing brown eyes.

"So, I can only assume that all of this," he waved a finger around the room and raised a brow, even though there was really no question about it in his mind, "was for my benefit."

"_It was not_," Cam hissed again, now just trying to bluff her way through this conversation with the least amount of embarrassment possible, getting out unscathed being a long lost dream.

"You're really a terrible liar," he grinned, not stopping until he got to the very edge of the tub and she took a step backward.

"I am not," she snapped then wanted to smack herself for that moronic comment when the corners of his green eyes crinkled in amusement. _God, could this possibly get any more embarrassing?_

"Not that I don't appreciate the effort but perhaps I didn't make myself clear yesterday," he whispered, leaning closer, one long forefinger reaching out to trace her left clavicle, fighting the urge to put his hands all over her when she gasped and her eyes flickered at that light contact. "If you see something you like, all you have to do is ask and it's yours," he whispered into her ear, as she plastered herself against the back of the shower to avoid full body contact.

"I don't see anything I like," she snapped, her chin lifting, her damned pride biting her in the ass like usual.

"Well I certainly like everything I see," Van Buren drawled, liking this woman more every second he spent in her company. He had no doubt she would be a royal pain in the ass to be in a relationship with but he didn't think she would ever be boring.

"You didn't see anything," Cam gasped, her mind frantically reviewing the scene that he had walked in on, sure that she had gotten the shower curtain wrapped around her before he could have gotten a good look and suddenly glad of that.

"Oh, Cam," he sighed into her ear, "did you forget that the shower curtain is see through?" he couldn't resist nipping at her earlobe.

Gasping in outrage that she had been standing in front of him naked the whole time, Cam's knees still went weak at the tug of his teeth on her earlobe and she desperately fought the urge to put her mouth all over him. Knowing another look at her enticing body would be a very, very bad idea, that it was time for him to make his exit before he forgot himself and got into real trouble with this enchanting woman, Van Buren forced himself to pull away from her. Unable to resist, he winked at her before spinning around and strolling slowly toward the door, laughing when a rolled up towel hit him in the back of the head as he reached out to unlock the door.

"Remember what I said, Cam. All you have to do is ask," he murmured quietly before walking out the door and closing it quietly behind him. Knees trembling too hard to support her weight, Cam released her hold on the shower curtain and sank into the tub, certain that she would never, ever forget those particular words.

"It's time to get up," Hodgins murmured sleepily, reaching over a yawning Angela to slap at the buzzing alarm clock.

"Ummpphh," she mumbled, burying her face in his shoulder and snuggling closer, never eager or particularly cheerful about meeting the new day.

"Angie," he leaned over her to singsong into her ear, ready to jerk his head back when she waved her hand around her head like she was shooing away an annoying gnat. "I'm not going away," he told her cheerfully, leaning up on an elbow and pushing the hair back from her face, ignoring the way her one partially open brown eye glared at him. "Good morning," he smiled.

"There is something seriously wrong with people who are so freaking cheerful this early in the morning. It's just not natural," she complained, rolling onto her back and stretching.

"Yeah, you've said that before," he laughed, leaning over to kiss her quickly on her pouting mouth grinning down at her and nuzzling his nose against hers when she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Keep doing that and I might not mind being woken up," she teased, lifting her head to nibble at his lips. Groaning, Hodgins lowered his head, his lips opening aggressively over hers, their tongues sliding against each other, one hand gripping her hip and pulling her against his hardening body, her hand wandering over his bare chest and stomach and moving lower.

"Keep doing that and we're going to be very, very late," he growled, catching her wandering hand and bringing it to his lips to place a lingering kiss in the palm.

"I know," Angela sighed, strangely okay with the sexual tension between them, almost afraid to give in to it and perhaps ruin what was so perfect between them at the moment. "You know, as bad as this case is, I'm going to be sorry to leave this place," she murmured, voicing the thought that had been bouncing around in her head since Brennan had announced they only need another 36 hours to finish up, completely unaware of the of the fear shining in her eyes at the thought of leaving their safe little cocoon and facing the real world as a couple.

"We talked about this last night, Ange," Hodgins soothed, settling back down on the bed and pulling her head onto his chest, his hand smoothing over her hair.

"I know but we didn't do so well in the real world last time," she fretted, her hand absently tracing patterns on his stomach.

"It will be different this time," Hodgins told her decisively.

"How can you know that, Hodgins?" she asked, tilting her head back to look at him with concerned eyes.

"Because _we're_ different," he explained patiently, smiling gently down at her. "Now we know how easy it is for things to go bad and we both know we don't want that. Right?"

"Right." Hodgins grinned at her vehement agreement.

"So we just have to make sure things stay on track. Right? Right, Ange?" he repeated when she chewed on her lower lip without answering him, his stomach tightening with concern.

"Right," she agreed not quite reluctantly, "but Hodgins, I'm really bad at this," she told him honestly. "I really want it to work out but I'm really afraid of messing it up." Sighing because this really wasn't news to him, he allowed his deductive reasoning skills to take over, the proverbial light bulb going off in his head only seconds later.

"Okay," he grinned, rolling her onto her back and leaning over her. "Are you as bad at relationships as Brennan?" he asked quietly.

"Nobody is as bad at relationships as Bren," Angela snorted, immediately feeling guilty for saying that about her best friend but she knew Hodgins hadn't meant it in a bad way and that he hadn't taken her answer as a criticism, more as a statement of fact. "What's your point?" she asked suspiciously.

"Look at her and Booth, Ange. With everything working against them, they found their way to each other and they're happy, baby. All we have to do is trust each other and we'll get there, too," he urged.

"I can do that," she grinned, suddenly filled with the instinctive knowledge that they would be more than all right, they would be extremely happy. Arms stealing around his neck again she pulled his head down, her lips meeting his in a kiss of absolute commitment and he eagerly responded, neither of them caring that they were well on their way to being late for work.

Twenty minutes later, Sweets cautiously peered around the kitchen door and sighed with relief when he only spotted Daisy, seated at the table, sipping coffee. Oh, thank God, he desperately needed some caffeine to jolt his brain awake so he could figure out how to handle the whole seeing Cam naked thing, feeling the need to profusely apologize even though he knew it hadn't been his fault at all. But more than that, he wanted the chance to have a private chat with Daisy, had been quietly watching her for days for just this opportunity to arise.

"Good morning," he said softly, entering the kitchen and heading toward the coffee pot.

"Good morning," Daisy returned politely, having already come to the conclusion that it was inevitable that she talk privately with her ex at some point and determined to handle it with grace. Carrying his coffee to the table, he slid into a chair across from his ex, hating how uncomfortable this felt, searching his mind for a topic of conversation that wouldn't make it even more awkward.

"So, how are you handling working on this case?" he asked, really wanting to know.

"I'm fine, Lance," she assured him placidly. "How are you handling seeing Cam naked this morning?" she asked, picking up her coffee and taking a sip to hide her grin.

"She _told _you?" Sweets gasped in horror after he stopped choking on the sip of coffee that had gone down the wrong way.

"Yes, she couldn't wait to share every gory detail," Daisy nodded, rolling her eyes when the psychologist's face did this blanching/coloring furiously thing that she found quite fascinating to observe. "Of course she didn't tell me about it, Lance," Daisy snapped, finally taking pity on him when it looked as if he might pass out. "But since I'm not deaf, it was kind of hard not to hear Cam shrieking for you to get out of the bathroom." Watching him deflate into his chair in relief, Daisy briefly considered not making the next comment, but only briefly. "In fact, I wouldn't be at all surprised if everyone heard her shrieking like a banshee," she grinned into her coffee cup, watching his eyes widen in horror. _Okay, maybe she wasn't handling this quite as gracefully as she would have liked but it was turning into fun so she was good with that._

"Oh, my God," moaned Sweets, dropping his head into his cupped hands.

"Oh, don't take it so hard, Lance. Everyone will probably just assume that you got lucky and she was screaming your name in passion," she assured him helpfully, reaching over to pat his shoulder.

"Oh. My. God." He shuddered in horror and Daisy couldn't hold back her laughter a second longer. Head jerking up, Sweets studied her laughing face with narrowed eyes. "_Are you messing with me_?" he demanded incredulously.

"Maybe," she shrugged causally. "Is that a problem?" she queried with a raised brow that dared him to object.

"No," he sighed softly, his hands cupping his coffee mug, his eyes on the table top. "I guess I deserve it and way more," he conceded, sitting up straight and meeting her eyes. While whole heartedly agreeing with his statement, Daisy held her peace on the subject and simply nodded her assent. "Are you ever going to forgive me, Daisy?" he asked solemnly and Daisy blinked, not having expected him to bring the subject that he had failed to address for weeks out in the open so quickly.

"Do you care?" she shot back, surprised to find that she was more curious than angry.

"Of course I care, Daisy. How could you even ask me that?" Sweets gasped, taken aback by the question.

"It's a valid question, Lance," Daisy insisted. Feeling her anger begin to stir, she crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him, not at all appeased by his mouth dropping open in astonishment. "You never tried to talk to me, to explain, to apologize, nothing. So what was I supposed to think?" she snapped, leaving him in no doubt that she was angry.

"But you said you didn't want to talk to me," he sputtered in his own defense, knowing it was a pathetically weak excuse and knowing it was the wrong thing to say immediately.

"You know, Lance, for a psychologist who's supposed to know how to deal with people, sometimes you are such a…a…a…guy," she spat, rising from her chair, infuriated that he hasn't known her better than that.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sweets demanded, desperately trying to keep her talking to him so he would know how to remove the hurt from her eyes that was breaking his heart but Daisy was finished with this conversation.

"You're a genius, Lance. Figure it out," she snarled before turning on her heel and stalking out of the room, not even wondering if it had been a mistake not to continue talking to him about this. If he didn't know why she was angry and hurt at this point, they'd never had a chance of making it in the first place and she was just incredibly tired of carrying the weight of all this anger and pain around inside of her. It was time to let it, and Sweets, go for good.

And he did figure it out. The instant she left the room, he was blindsided by an epiphany, one that would have been welcome a few weeks ago but one which, at the moment, only highlighted to him how much of an uncaring jerk he had really been. _God, he was an idiot._ Of course, she'd had a strong, negative reaction to their breakup. Considering the way things had gone down, who wouldn't have? Oh, he had no doubt that she had meant it at the time but he could now see that it had simply been a knee-jerk reaction to her anger and pain, a statement that she couldn't gracefully retract after the fact, even if she had wanted to. And he, boy genius, a freaking psychologist for God's sake, hadn't had the insight to see that in his own girlfriend, hadn't done what any moron who had messed up that badly would have instinctively known to do. But even worse, he had been so focused on "fixing" Booth and Brennan, so busy feeling sorry for himself that he hadn't even considered Daisy's feelings all that much. Some wonderful boyfriend, some insightful psychologist, hell, some terrific human being that made him, huh? _Not so much_, his conscience answered and he had to snort in disgusted agreement.

Well, he couldn't do anything about his past behavior and mistakes but he could certainly learn from those mistakes and try not to make them make them again. He could also try to repair a few burned bridges, starting with Daisy. He desperately wanted the wacky intern back in his life in her former capacity but, even if she was completely unwilling to pursue a romantic relationship with him now, she deserved to know how much he regretted the pain that they had all put her through. She deserved so much more than he had given her and, if she would just give him the chance, he would make all of that up to her, never, ever letting her down again. So caught up in his thoughts that he didn't notice the four people entering the kitchen, Sweets started and almost fell out of his chair when Booth casually clapped him on the shoulder in passing.

"Whoa there, buddy," Booth laughed grabbing the younger man's shoulder to keep him upright. "You're awfully jumpy there, Sweets. Haven't been up to something you shouldn't have, now have you?" he teased, his eyes narrowing when Sweets' face flamed in embarrassment and his Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed repeatedly.

"Like what?" gulped Sweets', his mind flying to the bathroom incident earlier that morning.

"Well, I don't know, Sweets. That's what you're supposed to tell me," Booth drawled, crossing his arms over his chest and pinning the psychologist in place with his best interrogation face.

"It wouldn't have anything to do with Cam screaming out your name early this morning, would it, Sweets?" Angela laughed from the coffee pot and Sweets' face grew even redder. Sputtering, desperately trying to come up with a face saving answer, Sweets stood, ready to make a run for it if it became necessary.

"Ooohhh," laughed Hodgins through his teeth. "Don't tell me that you and Cam finally gave in to that simmering sexual tension that's always been there just below the surface," he teased, just to see how red Sweets' face could get before it actually melted off.

"Haha, very funny, guys," Sweets snapped, heading toward the door.

"Aww, come on, Sweets, don't get mad and run off," Angela cajoled with a grin and Sweets' steps slowed down, only to speed back up when she continued. "At least until you answer Hodgins question."

"Yeah, Sweets'," Hodgins called out good naturedly, "inquiring minds want to know."

Intent only on escaping the tormenting horde at his back, Sweets didn't notice that someone else had stepped into the kitchen until he barreled into them, his hands automatically going up to steady the other person as they took an unsteady step backward. Unfortunately, his aim was more than a little off and, instead of grabbing Cam's upper arm as had been his intent, his hand closed over her left breast. Fortunately, the tormenting horde, otherwise known as Booth, Brennan, Angela and Hodgins couldn't see his actions, they could only hear Cam's gasp of outrage and look on in avid interest as she and Sweets looked at each other with horrified gazes, their faces flaming. Jerking back his hand, Sweets frantically searched his mind for an adequate apology but Cam wasn't waiting around to hear it. Spinning on her heel she got out of there post haste with Sweets hot on her heels, unwilling to answer the questions he felt sure would be coming his way if he stuck around.

"You don't really think….," Angela gasped after several seconds of complete silence during which the group only gaped at where Cam and Sweets had been standing trying to come up with a reason for them to look like they had seen each other naked if they hadn't.

"Cam and Sweets?" scoffed Hodgins. "Surely not," he added but even he heard the uncertainty in his voice.

"No way," countered Booth decisively, leaning against the counter and smiling at Brennan when she handed him a freshly poured cup of coffee.

"I, too, find it highly improbable that Cam and Sweets had sexual intercourse," she supported Booth's words. "And I'm, quite illogically, finding the thought more than a little itchy," she added.

"It's icky, Sweetie, not itchy," Angela corrected automatically, "but, yeah, I'm right there with you on that one," she agreed adamantly.

"I was going to say seriously disturbing but icky covers it, too," agreed Hodgins and Booth had to nod in agreement. Even though he was certain that was never gonna happen it made him a little queasy to think about it. Not because he had once been involved with Cam but because it would just be all kinds of wrong for her to sleep with the baby duck.

"I'm ready to go now," Brennan informed him and Booth's attention immediately shifted to focus on his partner, although he did notice Angela and Hodgins heading toward the door to give them a moment of privacy, which Booth appreciated since his morning was starting out at the lodge and he wouldn't see Brennan for several hours.

"Okay," Taking the Styrofoam container out of her hand, he transferred both cups of coffee to the counter and hooked his fingers in her belt loops, pulling her against him. "Remember to be careful today," he ordered as her arms wrapped around his neck.

"I will," she nodded solemnly and he grinned, dropping his forehead to rest against hers, impressed that she didn't even roll her eyes at him especially since this was at least the twentieth time she'd heard it just this morning.

"I love you, baby," he whispered, his hands coming up to cup her face, his head dipping even lower.

"I love you, too, Booth," she sighed into his mouth as it opened over hers in a leisurely, extremely thorough kiss. Reluctantly, breaking contact with her lips, he smoothed the hair back from her face. "Go to work, Dr. Brennan, so that we can get the worst of this case over with and get back to reality," he ordered teasingly, laughing when she stood on tiptoe to brush a quick kiss against his lips before winking at him, grabbing her coffee and sauntering jauntily out of the room. Smiling happily, Booth watched her go, neither one of them having any idea that by this afternoon they would find out that they had, so far, only scratched the surface on the horrors of this case and that none of their realities would ever be exactly the same again.


	49. Chapter 49

Hey, guys, I'm finally back with another chapter but Musie is still hyped up on birthday cake. I can't get her to settle down just yet so you are going to have to wait on the angst. I know that breaks your hearts and I hope this helps. Let me know what you think. Thanks, T.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

Brennan didn't even make it to the greenhouse before being confronted with her first problem of the day. As usual upon arrival at the site, she briskly headed straight to the lab, not bothering to check and see if the squinterns were following because they knew the routine by now and, well, because they were smart people and knew better than not to hop to it even without explicit instructions. The first order of the day was always donning the blue jumpsuits and Brennan also used the opportunity to briefly outline what they needed to accomplish for the day as well as check in with the lab, getting updates on Clark's progress with the remains and giving him instructions on how to proceed.

Her mind busy cataloguing the tests she wanted Clark to run on the latest sets of remains, Brennan grabbed a notepad and pen from her usual station and turned toward the table holding the video monitor and satellite hookup equipment. Almost tripping over Wendell and Fisher, who were following her around much too closely, she frowned at the intrusion into her personal space, nodding with satisfaction when the young men immediately backed off. Giving it no further thought, she expertly made the connection with the Jeffersonian and waited rather impatiently for Clark to come on screen, blinking in astonishment when he finally did.

"What the bloody hell happened to him?" Vincent whispered, stunned to see the always immaculate Clark looking like he had been dragged through the gutter.

_Good question_, thought Brennan, her eyes quickly scanning what she could see of the young man, not at all reassured by what she saw. To start with, his glasses were hanging precariously by one ear, not even on his face and he was squinting heavily at the monitor. His lab coat was in pristine condition but the fact that its buttons and buttonholes were off by at least three immediately pulled her attention to his white dress shirt which was covered with heavy splotches and streaks of some dark material, his tie turned around so far that you couldn't even see the knot. As if suddenly realizing his glasses weren't in place, he began to pat the pockets of his lab coat, leaving behind hand prints in the same black substance that coated his shirt.

"Is there a problem at the lab, Clark?" Brennan asked quietly, her eyes narrowing and her gut tightening with anxiety when she didn't receive an immediate answer.

"Try your right ear," Wendell called out helpfully and Clark patted around until he found the glasses, almost sagging with relief as he transferred them to his nose.

Telling himself to man up, that she couldn't actually kill him from so far away, Clark stiffened his spine and put on his best professional face. _Yeah, but she's got a helicopter and she can get here pretty damned fast. Run, man, run._ _Save yourself _! Ignoring the voice of self preservation in his head, he smoothed down the lapels of his lab coat, lifted his chin and finally risked looking at Brennan, wincing when he saw her arms crossed over her chest, her eyes narrowed and sparkling with what he hoped was simply impatience.

"Good morning, Dr. Brennan," he offered with what he knew was a sick smile, hoping she wouldn't repeat the question even as he knew it was futile hope.

"Is there a problem at the lab, Clark?" she repeated, her voice ripe with anxiety, her eyes scanning what she could see of the lab for any damage or clue to explain Clark's condition and he knew his time was up.

"Is Dr. Saroyan there?" he asked a little desperately, knowing it was a good idea to have the voice of reason handy when he answered that question.

"Yes, Clark, I'm here." Cam pushed her way through the circle of interns gathered around Brennan so she could get to the monitor, stopping in her tracks, her mouth falling open in astonishment when she caught sight of Clark. "What the hell happened to you?" She gasped, stepping closer to the monitor.

"Good morning, Dr. Saroyan," Clark greeted civilly before turning his attention back to Brennan. "Yes, Dr. Brennan, there was a slight problem at the lab this morning but it's taken care of now," he assured her, nervously tugging on the hem of his lab coat, completely unaware of how ridiculous this looked with it being so bunched up from being buttoned improperly.

"Ooohhh, he is so dead," breathed Vincent through his teeth, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against the table, getting comfortable so he could enjoy the fireworks.

"Oh, yeah," agreed Wendell, moving to Vincent's side and copying his posture.

"I, too, fear that our friend will soon depart on that lonely journey to the afterlife," Fisher nodded, taking up a place beside Wendell.

"You don't know that," Daisy snapped impatiently, glaring at her male counterparts, still more than a little irritated with Sweets and more than willing to take it out on them. "It's probably nothing," she defended Clark, having no idea if she was correct but unwilling to stand by and let them gang up on someone who wasn't here to defend themselves, a feeling that she was intimately familiar with.

"The explosion was minor," Clark couldn't help the quiver in his voice as he threw those words out there, instinctively closing his eyes and bracing for the huge explosion he expected from Brennan.

"You blew up my lab?" she hissed, so horrified at the thought that she could only manage a harsh whisper. Not hearing the question, Clark finally opened his eyes thinking he had seriously misjudged her reaction. He was wrong. "YOU BLEW UP MY LAB?" she roared in accusation.

"Oh, yeah, he's dog meat," Daisy sighed, joining her colleagues, well out of the line of fire.

"No, no, Dr. Brennan, I didn't blow up the lab," Clark assured her earnestly, holding his hands up in supplication, his head tilted to the side. "And the fire was really small so we got it under control immediately." Running a hand over his head, he began to pace, knowing he wasn't handling this very well but so nervous, he couldn't seem to shut up.

"Fire? What fire?" demanded Cam.

"YOU BURNED DOWN MY LAB?" Brennan yelled at the same time, drowning out Cam's less accusatory question, knowing her reaction was a little extreme but, dammit, she had made it clear to Clark that explosions and fires during her absence were simply unacceptable.

"No, I did _not_ burn down the lab," Clark answered stiffly, knowing it was a really bad idea to cop an attitude with Brennan, that knowledge reinforced when her eyes narrowed further and her mouth tightened. Unfortunately for him, that was generally his reaction to the type of stress he was currently under. Very much liking his job and not wanting to lose it, he took a deep breath and tried again. "Dr. Brennan, I can assure you that the lab is still standing as you can see in the background," he said more genially, reaching forward and swiveling the monitor so she could get a better look, relieved to see she looked much calmer when he repositioned the monitor and slumped down into a chair in front of it.

Extremely relieved to see no visible damage to the lab, Brennan forced herself to unclench her fists and take some deep breaths to calm down before she started asking questions.

"What happened, Clark?" Cam asked quickly, stepping into the breach, casting concerned glances in Brennan's direction.

"I honestly don't know," Clark admitted quietly, running a hand across his face and grimacing when he noticed the soot on his hands that was probably all over his face now. Looking around for something to wipe his hands on, he apparently forgot the need to supply a more comprehensive explanation and got up to expand his search.

"Clark," Brennan snapped, the anxiety gnawing at her gut demanding some answers. "Was anyone hurt?" she asked quietly as Clark immediately reseated himself, wiping his hands on his lab coat, his eyes focused on Brennan.

"No, no one was hurt," Clark assured her hastily, realizing that he should have led with that information. Telling himself to calm down, he took a deep breath and straightened, shakily slipping back into professional mode.

"Thank God," Cam breathed, relaxing now that she knew everyone was okay. Property damage could always be repaired but people damage, not so much.

"Where, exactly, was the explosion?" Brennan asked, resisting the urge to yell at Clark to hurry up, knowing that he was already upset and her raising her voice wouldn't help matters.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Brennan. I was momentarily distracted," Clark offered sincerely and Brennan nodded. "The explosion and fire took place in the ookey room." Any further explanation was cut off by a roar of fury from Hodgins as he pushed his way through the crowd gathered around the monitor.

"You blew up my experiment room? What the hell, dude?" he demanded angrily, reaching Brennan's side and getting a good look at Clark for the first time. "Whoa, you look like crap," he added after eying the younger man critically.

"Thank you, Dr. Hodgins but in my defense, it's pretty damned hard to maintain an immaculate appearance when you're fighting a fire. And just for the record, I DID NOT BLOW UP THE FREAKING LAB!" Clark yelled snarkily, jumping up from his chair and beginning to pace, muttering under his breath, his arms waving around wildly.

"What's with the meltdown?" Angela asked, nodding toward the screen, having detoured to the bathroom and missed the earlier explanation.

"Clark blew up the lab," all four interns answered in unison.

"What? You blew up the lab?" Angela gasped in horror, her question bringing Clark stalking back over to the monitor.

"I. Did. Not. Blow. Up. The. Lab," he hissed through clenched teeth, leaning over until his nose was actually touching the monitor.

"But they said you did," Angela objected, pointing at the four smirking interns behind her, taken aback at the obvious hostility radiating from Clark.

As much as he was enjoying seeing the normally unflappable Clark so agitated you could actually hear his teeth grinding together, Hodgins decided to intervene before the poor guy's head exploded. "They were just stirring things up, Ange," Hodgins assured Angela, quickly hiding a smile behind his hand as the artist turned a baleful eye promising retribution toward the grinning interns and they quickly began to fidget.

"Clark," snapped Brennan, her patience at an end. "I require clarification on the nature of the explosion as well as the damage the lab sustained."

_God, he was so going to get fired if he didn't pull it together_, Clark chastised himself, dropping back down into his chair and, once again, focusing his attention on Brennan. "I apologize for my outburst, Dr. Brennan," he said formally, not at all surprised when she waved off the apology, obviously eager for him to get on with the explanation. "As I said earlier, the explosion took place in the ookey room. Since it hadn't even been unlocked for the day, it was unoccupied and no one was injured. Luckily, the explosion was loud enough that it attracted several people's attention and we got to the fire before it could do any real damage."

"Were any of the remains from this case compromised?" Brennan asked sharply, knowing that the lab's state of the art fire suppression system would have kicked in immediately upon detecting the fire.

"No, no remains were compromised at all," Clark assured her hastily. "The fire was so small and so localized that the fire suppression system was only activated in that room."

"Has the fire marshal been notified yet, Clark?" Cam asked anxiously, chewing on her bottom lip, the dozen or so administrative things that needed to be done immediately running through her mind.

"Yes, Dr. Saroyan, he has been notified but he hasn't arrived yet so we have to wait on him to verify that it's safe to return to the lineup before we can really do anything." Knowing that was standard procedure, Cam nodded, silently debating on where her presence was most needed and coming to the conclusion that she should return to the lab immediately.

"You should also evacuate, Clark," Brennan told him firmly, not wanting anyone to place themselves in a dangerous situation.

"I'm coming home," Cam blurted out before Clark could respond to Brennan, her mind quickly calculating just how long it would take for her to gather her things and get back home. "I can be there in about 4 hours," she assured Clark, having no qualms whatsoever about commandeering the chopper under these particular circumstances.

"I think that's a good idea, Cam," Brennan praised, desperately wanting to go back and check out the damage herself but knowing she couldn't leave the site so Cam going was the next best thing.

"That won't be necessary, Dr. Saroyan," drawled a deep voice that all four of them instantly recognized, even though none of them had heard it in quite some time. "I assure you that I have things under control," Dr. Goodman stepped in front of the monitor and smiled fondly at his colleagues.

"Oh my God, you're back," Angela squealed, clapping her hands in delight.

"Yes, Ms. Montenegro, I have returned from my sabbatical rested and eager to rejoin the Jeffersonian," he assured her, his face and voice softening at her obvious delight in seeing him again.

"It's good to see you, man," Hodgins grinned, equally pleased to see Goodman. Even though they had frequently butted heads in the past, he had nothing but deep respect and affection for the older man.

"As it is you, Dr. Hodgins." Goodman inclined his head regally and Hodgins couldn't help but laugh, not realizing how much he had missed the gesture until he saw it again.

"Ah, Dr. Brennan, you appear to be well," Dr. Goodman's eyes moved to Brennan, a sparkle of delight entering his dark eyes. A lot of people found dealing with the anthropologist… challenging to say the least but he had always found her delightful even when she was being pigheaded stubborn about something that she didn't want to do. Yes, she could be difficult but she was never boring and, over the years, he had developed a deep, abiding respect and affection for her.

"I'm very well, Dr. Goodman," she returned the head nod, not realizing until this moment that she had missed this man's presence in her life very, very much. "It's good to see you," she added softly and Goodman's eyes widened in surprise at the sentiment in both her words and her voice. He had been kept updated on the antics of his Jeffersonian team but it appeared there were gaps in his knowledge and he looked forward to getting to know these interesting, aggravating, brilliant people again.

"Thank you, Dr. Brennan, and I am very pleased to see you, as well." Eyes moving on to Cam, he noted how she was chewing on her bottom lip and immediately and correctly guessed the reason. Well, he could put her mind at rest about that. "Dr. Saroyan, I'd like to commend you on the remarkable job you've done in my absence. I very much look forward to becoming better acquainted with you and would like to get your input on some changes I'm considering in other departments when time permits."

"I would be delighted to offer my assistance," Cam said quickly, very relieved that her job was safe.

"I would like nothing better than to continue a conversation with you fine people but, unfortunately, the fire marshal waits for no one and I have several matters to discuss with Dr. Saroyan before his arrival," Goodman smiled at his colleagues, more pleased to be back by the second. Knowing a dismissal when he heard it, Hodgins gave a wave and headed for the door.

"Clark, I would like for you to contact me as soon as the lab is cleared to reopen," Brennan instructed, noting his nod but taking his compliance for granted.

"I will come get you myself as soon as Clark calls," Cam assured Brennan when she turned toward her. Nodding, Brennan also headed toward the door, the squinterns following behind her in single formation. Bringing up the rear, Angela waited until they were outside then broke formation to make her way to Brennan's side, linking her arm with Brennan's, giggling as she glanced over her shoulder.

"What's so funny?" asked Brennan curiously, glancing over her shoulder and seeing the interns following her lead but unsure what was humorous about that.

"They just made me think of the Pied Piper," Angela grinned, jerking her head toward the interns.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan frowned.

"It's not important, Sweetie," Angela patted her arm, glancing at Brennan curiously when she didn't insist on an answer, noting the concern in her eyes and immediately knowing the cause. You could take the anthropologist out of the lab but you couldn't take the lab out of the anthropologist. "Don't worry about the lab, Sweetie," Angela urged, "Clark said everything was okay now and Dr. Goodman is there. You know he can handle anything, Bren."

"Yes," Brennan acknowledged her confidence in Dr. Goodman absolute. "It's just not a good way to start off the day," Brennan sighed.

"Look at it like this, Bren," Angela laughed, "this day has to be uphill from here on out. What could be worse than an explosion and a fire at the lab?"

Nodding, Brennan gave Angela a weak smile, shivering as an inexplicable chill ran down her spine and she remembered Booth's admonishment that saying something like that was just asking for trouble. Being a logical, rational scientist, she, of course didn't believe in superstitious nonsense and she never would. Or so she thought.


	50. Chapter 50

Hey, guys, I know it's been a while since I posted and I apologize but I'm going to be taking a couple of weeks off and wanted to reassure you all that I will be returning to these stories ASAP. Hopefully, I will be refreshed and full of B&B smutty goodness so keep your fingers crossed. I can't tell you how very much I appreciate each and every one of you and I WILL be back. Thanks, T.


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